The findings from the Investigative Unit have made front-page news in many of the world’s most respected newspapers including The Guardian, Mail on Sunday and Daily Telegraph in Britain, India’s Hindustan Times, Le Monde in France, El Pais in Spain, The Australian, The New York Times, Washington Post and USA Today.
Our work has dominated political coverage in South Africa, Namibia, the Maldives and Kenya.
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Forbes Russia
India Times: Cyprus papers reveal secret migration of China’s rich led by Asia’s richest woman
Khaama Press: Afghanistan House Speaker Obtains Cyprus ‘Golden Passport’ for $2.5M
The release of the investigation set off a media firestorm, generating headlines in countries as far afield as Vietnam, Venezuela and Taiwan. The New York Times, Washington Post, London Times, BBC and Forbes also covered the story.
The Cyprus Papers also had extensive coverage in the EU, with reports in the Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, Belgian and German media.
A member of the European parliament described the findings as ‘highly worrying’ and said that ‘golden passport’ regimes are a security risk for Europe.
Following the revelations, the European Justice Commissioner, Didier Reynders, announced that he was considering legal action against Cyprus. Infringement proceedings began two months later.
The Cyprus government dismissed the findings, claiming they were ‘propaganda’ and not investigative journalism. Two months later the government was forced to abolish the scheme.
Simply unbelievable how #Cyprus undermines the #EuropeanUnion by giving EU-sanctioned Russians EU passports (and many more Russian criminals access to our countries) for 2 Million € each.https://t.co/glZx1JJQR3
— Julian Röpcke🇺🇦 (@JulianRoepcke) August 26, 2020
You have to stop this, @vonderleyen & Angela Merkel (@RegSprecher). pic.twitter.com/wHejBa7zjo
Check out great investigative stories in GIJN's bulletin: Cyprus's Golden Passports by @AlJazeera, How Moscow Privatized Geneva's Oldest International Organization by @istories_media, Unholy Finances by @columbiajourn, @CLIP_AmericaLat & partners, and more https://t.co/OK0BShQBGk pic.twitter.com/tiV4Gt3bxg
— Global Investigative Journalism Network (@gijn) September 4, 2020
Anti-corruption has 99 problems & EU #goldenvisas are one. #CyprusPapers https://t.co/0qWrMhLlrb
— Transparency International (@anticorruption) August 29, 2020
These shady golden passport schemes must end. National governments are selling what is not theirs to sell: EU citizenship. EU countries rolling out the red carpet for dodgy money and giving criminals a golden ticket into the EU. https://t.co/wtbXn4nbex
— Sophie in 't Veld (@SophieintVeld) August 25, 2020
BREAKING: New email leak from Cyprus shows that the authorities there sold passports to numerous Russian criminals and fugitives allowing them full access to the EU https://t.co/SAHeqRpEPp
— Sir William Browder KCMG (@Billbrowder) August 24, 2020
Cool investigation by @AJIunit into Cyprus's 'golden passports scheme'. The island has sold 1,000 passports to wealthy #Russians since 2017, some of them on the run and accused of bribery and other crimes #CyprusPapers https://t.co/lRMWdXrpRA
— Luke Harding (@lukeharding1968) August 23, 2020
We've known since 2019 that Cyprus sells passports to dodgy individuals, but this #CyprusPapers investigation reveals the sheer scale of the problem. Must read: https://t.co/ElweGvvI3d
— Daphne Papadopoulou (@daphnenews) August 23, 2020
