Georgi Muradov, the Russian ambassador in Nicosia, said in an interview that he did not expect Russian enterprises targeting the Turkish market to be hurt. But Russia's move to sell arms to Cyprus was not made in a vacuum. It also allows Russia to assert its influence at a time when its financial ability to match U.S. diplomatic and military initiatives in this strategic region is limited. Moreover, it provides Russia with a means of driving a new wedge between Greece and Turkey, both NATO members, at a time when the U.S.-led alliance is poised to expand eastward into regions that slid out of the Russian sphere of influence less than a decade ago. However, the very business interests that led Russians to Cyprus in the first place mean that any diplomatic leverage Moscow gains through the S-300 deal could be counterbalanced by big financial losses.
Local sources say that up to a third of monetary turnover within Russia depends on Cyprus.
If deployment of Russian missiles destabilizes the situation in the eastern Mediterranean, Russia stands to lose a major source of investment and trade. If, indeed, the Kremlin is selling defensive weapons to Cyprus for reasons not purely commercial, it is taking a gamble. Jennifer DeLay submitted this column to Russia Today. Read the past issues too. Post a message on Russia Today's discussion area .