PM Mitsotakis meets Cyprus President in Athens; Christodoulides addresses 15th ND Congress

Cyprus President addresses 15th ND Congress in Athens

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Sunday met Cyprus President Nikos Christodoulides at the Maximos Mansion in Athens, where the Cypriot president was attending the 15th Congress of the ruling New Democracy party. They discussed the latest developments concerning the Cyprus issue and the continued cooperation and coordination of Greece and Cyprus ahead of the next round of talks. Mitsotakis repeated Greece’s steadfast support for Cyprus’ ‘Amalthia’ initiative, which seeks to create a humanitarian corridor to Gaza. They also discussed the new wave of migrant flows to Cyprus, which create great concern that a new migration route is emerging due to the continuing instability and violence in the Middle East.

Cyprus President addresses 15th ND Congress in Athens

While in Athens on Sunday, Christodoulides also addressed ruling New Democracy’s 15th Congress, noting that it coincides with the party’s 50th year of contributing to Greece and Europe. “ND is the key blood donor to a faction that worked for the unity, growth and the presence of Greece in the EU,” Christodoulides said, calling the party a “European beacon” that has “always been on the right side of history”. “Under Kyriakos Mitsotakis, ND has contributed with actions and not words to establishing Greece’s sovereignty and independence, upgrading the Armed Forces and gain the respect of all countries,” he added, noting that “with Mitsotakis at the helm, we shall achieve all our goals.” Cyprus’ president also referred to Greece’s support for Cyprus’ efforts to overturn the situation after the illegal Turkish occupation of the north of the island, which this year marks its 50th anniversary. “This cannot be the future of European Cyprus,” Christodoulides remarked, saying that he will spare no effort to end the occupation and reunite the island. “I feel the need to thank the Greek people and Kyriakos Mitsotakis for the active and substantive support of our efforts on a basis of joint understanding and a single strategy,” he added, highlighting the strong and unbreakable bonds between Greece and Cyprus. Also coming up, he pointed out, was the 20-year anniversary of Cyprus joining the EU, which could not have happened without Greece’s support. He concluded by noting that Greece and Cyprus represented the external borders of the EU and key pillars of stability and security in the region, and would continue a joint strategy on many issues, from the illegal invasion of Ukraine by Russia to developments in the Middle East. He also expressed his support for the candidacy of Ursula von der Leyen for president of the European Commission.