Press Releases

The President of the Republic, Mr Nicos Anastasiades, received the credentials of the Ambassador of Peru stationed in Rome, Mr Julio Eduardo Martinetti Macedo, during a formal ceremony held at the Presidential Palace on Thursday, 6 February 2020.

 Presenting his credentials, Mr Macedo, speaking in English, said:

“Your Excellency,

It is with great pleasure and honor that today I present the Letters of Credence that accredit me as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Peru to the Republic of Cyprus. I also avail myself of the occasion, Your Excellency, to present the Letters of Recall of my predecessor.

I take this opportunity to convey the warmest greetings of His Excellency Mr. Martín Vizcarra Cornejo, President of the Republic of Peru, and extend, through Your Excellency, the best wishes of the Government and people of Peru to the Government and people of Cyprus.

Let me assure Your Excellency, the Peruvian Government’s continuous support for the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of the Republic of Cyprus. Peru will support the initiatives aimed at the reunification of the island pursuant to the relevant international principles and United Nations Resolutions. I am confident that under your mandate, you will continue the successful economic revitalization of Cyprus and pursue peace by finding a just, comprehensive, viable, mutually acceptable, and lasting settlement to the island’s question.

 Your Excellency,

Peru and Cyprus, though geographically distant, have developed and maintained cordial relations based on shared values and common interests. In that sense, the Peruvian Government reiterates its interest in strengthening the ties of friendship that unite our two nations and the importance to work closely together to intensify and further develop our bilateral relations in different fields particularly in the areas of trade and culture. My work will be dedicated to expanding and deepening the relations between our countries.

The Government of Peru also appreciates the mutual collaboration with the Government of Cyprus in various international organizations, and we especially acknowledge and appreciate Cyprus’s valuable support of Peruvian candidacies.

Your Excellency,

With your support and the friendly cooperation of your government I shall spare no effort in further expanding, deepening, and consolidating the political and commercial ties between our countries and broaden our cooperation in other areas of mutual interest.

I feel deeply honored and privileged to be appointed Ambassador of Peru to Cyprus, and I wish to assure your Excellency that during my tenure of office I will exert all my efforts to further enhance and strengthen the friendship between the governments and peoples of Peru and Cyprus”.

Receiving the credentials, the President said:

Your Excellency,

”It is with great pleasure that I receive today your Letters of Credence appointing you as the new Ambassador of the Republic of Peru to the Republic of Cyprus. Please accept my heartfelt congratulations for your appointment. I would like to wish you every success in the performance of your high duties and to assure you that my Government will provide you with every assistance you may need in the fulfilment of your noble mission.

My Government looks forward to working closely with you in building upon the friendly relations that exist between our two countries and peoples. Cyprus and Peru share common principles and values, evident through our common membership in international fora, especially the United Nations. May I express on this occasion, my Government’s appreciation for the record of reciprocal support between Cyprus and Peru in international organisations.

I also wish to express my readiness to work with you towards the further strengthening of our bilateral relations and to explore new areas of cooperation. Cyprus values its cordial relations with Peru which it views also through the prism of EU-Peru relations and will continue to support the strengthening of this dialogue and cooperation.

Your Excellency,

As regards the economy, following the severe economic crisis of 2013, Cyprus has achieved a return to positive growth rates since 2015. For 2019, the growth rate is estimated at 3.2%, while medium-term macroeconomic forecasts project a robust growth of around 3% in the years to come.

Public finances have been set - and they continue to be - on a sustainable management path. In particular, for 2019 the budget surplus is expected to be at 3.8% as a percentage of GDP. The labour market is continuing to record steady progress, with an estimation of 7% unemployment for 2019, compared with 8.4% the previous year. The percentage decline in unemployment is among the largest in the EU and it is projected that by 2020 we will return to full employment conditions.

The banking system, re-focusing its operations and fully adhering to the strictest international transparency and compliance regulations, is now based on a stronger and healthier base in terms of capitalization, liquidity and profitability. Remarkable progress has also been achieved with respect to non-performing loans. The positive outlook of the Cypriot economy, as well as effective actions in the banking sector, have strengthened the confidence of investors and of International Credit Rating Agencies, reflected through a number of successive upgrades, currently classifying Cyprus at the investment grade.

Our commitment as a Government is to remain focused on maintaining and broadening the conditions under which surpluses and high growth rates can be generated, to continue promoting structural reforms and improving the country’s business environment.

Your Excellency,

I am aware of your particular interest as regards the latest developments on the Cyprus Problem and the prospect of resuming the negotiating process. Following the renewed active involvement of the Secretary-General of the United Nations, a tripartite meeting was convened last November in Berlin between Mr. Guterres, the Turkish Cypriot leader Mr. Akinci and myself. It was a productive meeting which our side considers as a positive step in our efforts to conclude the “Terms of Reference” and resume the peace process in the framework of the Good Offices Mission of the UN Secretary-General.

Such a development would allow us to hold an informal Conference on Cyprus in the format of the previous ones, which would give the opportunity to all stakeholders to discuss the modalities that should guide the possible resumption of meaningful and well-prepared negotiations.

Taking this opportunity, I wish to express my personal appreciation, as well as that of my Government and the people of the Republic of Cyprus, for Peru’s support and contribution towards our efforts to reach a viable and lasting settlement of the Cyprus problem.

Regrettably, Turkey continues to act as a “spoiler” by, amongst others, turning to military threats, illegal drilling activities within the Exclusive Economic Zone of the Republic of Cyprus, threats to open the fenced-οff city of Ammochostos Famagusta and signing an illegal Memorandum of Understanding on the delimitation of maritime jurisdictions in the Mediterranean Sea with Libya.

Actions which have been condemned in the strongest manner by the international community and the EU, since they do not comply with the notion of good neighbourly relations, international law and particularly the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, and infringe upon the sovereign rights of third States.

Actions which, apart from escalating tensions in our already turbulent region, have also a huge negative effect on our efforts to resume the peace process and do not create the necessary conditions for all parties to engage in a results-oriented dialogue.

We do hope that Turkey will finally adopt a more realistic and constructive approach by refraining from actions which do not create the necessary conditions of establishing an environment conducive to having productive negotiations on an equal footing. We also hope that Turkish stakeholders will finally acknowledge the overwhelming benefit of becoming part of our regional cooperation agenda and of positively working towards a viable solution to the Cyprus problem which would reunify Cyprus and its people and enhance regional stability.

Despite the challenges we face, I wish to assure you that I remain strongly committed in engaging in a new round of negotiations, once conditions permit it, with the aim to reach a lasting, viable and comprehensive settlement to the Cyprus issue, in line with the European acquis, international law and the relevant UN Resolutions. A settlement that will safeguard the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of Cyprus, ensuring the peaceful and prosperous co-existence of all Cypriots, Greek and Turkish, without any third country dependencies, military troops and guarantees.

Your Excellency,

In welcoming you to Cyprus, I would kindly request you to convey to the President, His Excellency Mr Martín Vizcarra Cornejo, my warmest greetings, and a message of sincere friendship and solidarity to the people of the Republic of Peru”.

SS/SCH