Press Releases

 The President of the Republic, Mr Nicos Anastasiades, received the credentials of the Ambassador of Egypt, Mr Mohsen Hamza, during a formal ceremony held at the Presidential Palace, today, Thursday, 17 December 2020.

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

“I am truly honored to present my Credentials today as the Ambassador of the Arab Republic of Egypt to the Republic of Cyprus. I wish on this occasion to convey President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi’s sincere greetings and appreciation.

Mr President,

Our two countries are bound by uniquely historic and geographic ties. Undoubtedly, these ties form the solid foundation of a strategic partnership that covers a wide array of fields.

Moreover, the commencement of my mission coincides with the year marking the 60th anniversary of establishing diplomatic relations between Egypt and Cyprus. It also follows the convening of the Eighth Trilateral Cooperation Summit which brought together Egypt, Cyprus and Greece in Nicosia on 21 October 2020, and agreed on a joint declaration outlining a common vision on a number of regional issues and cooperative ventures.

I hope to utilize the momentum emanating from these positive developments in order to solidify our relations even more, while striving to open up new avenues of cooperation.

At the same time, this past year has been very challenging. The COVID-19 pandemic has presented us all with new adversities. I hope the pandemic ends soon, so we can resume an active course of engagement that reflects our joint political will and serves our mutual interests well.

Moreover, our region faces mounting challenges and serious threats to its collective security and stability. Both our countries share common positions on these challenges and threats that violate international law, prolong regional conflicts and sponsor terrorism. Egypt will continue to coordinate, consult and exchange valuable information with Cyprus and our trusted partners in that connection.

I would like to seize this opportunity to reaffirm Egypt’s firm position on the Cyprus issue based on United Nations Security Council Resolutions and therefore our opposition to any acts that contravene with what was agreed on by the international community.

As for regional energy security, it has undoubtedly become a prominent topic of interest and should inspire more collaboration. Our joint cooperative endeavors in both the gas and electricity sectors are a case in point. We need to make the best use of the huge potential available and move forward towards the implementation of existing projects while considering other possible undertakings.

Along the same lines, the East Mediterranean Gas Forum, which both Egypt and Cyprus are a part of, serves as a prototype for regional collaboration and a platform for ensuring energy security, and promoting cooperative projects. Its operationalization is a top priority for us and we will work with Cyprus towards that end.

Furthermore, our special partnership should guide us together, along with our partners, down a path of meaningful dialogue and interaction as opposed to one of confrontation. As such, we highly appreciate Cyprus’s valuable support of Egypt’s relationship with the European Union and count on its continuity.

Mr President,

Our military collaboration is growing and our political coordination remains steadfast and increasing. The strength of our strategic partnership and our common political will need to be better translated on the economic and commercial fronts. This is particularly relevant as Egypt’s economy is steadily becoming one of the world’s best preforming emerging economies. The business environment presents unique opportunities that both sides should exploit and I therefore intend to work with concerned parties in order to explore all relevant prospects.

In conclusion, I wish Your Excellency and your family as well as the People of Cyprus all the best.”

Receiving the credentials, the President said:

“Excellency,

It is with distinct pleasure and genuine feelings of friendship that I receive today your Letters of Credence, appointing you as the new Ambassador of the Arab Republic of Egypt to the Republic of Cyprus. Please rest assured that my Government and I personally will furnish you with every assistance in the performance of your high duties, aiming at building upon the already excellent bilateral relations that we have developed between our two countries.

The ties between Cyprus and Egypt can be traced back in the millennia and are evident in a multitude of archaeological findings. Today our 60 years old bilateral relations expand through a plethora of fields and agreements, the benefits of which are visible at the level of our daily people to people contacts. Needless to mention that there is always room for further enhancement and in this respect, we are looking forward to working with you towards the conclusion of currently pending agreements.

Excellency,

You have arrived in Cyprus at a crucial historical juncture. While enjoying the aforementioned level of bilateral relations, we are faced at the same time with unprecedented common challenges that require close cooperation and coordination at regional level. In this regard, Cyprus and Egypt had taken, along with Greece, in 2014, the initiative to establish the first of a number of trilateral partnerships in the region. Our trilateral cooperation has already yielded specific results in a number of fields. Naturally, the broad range and future of our trilateral partnership, were extensively discussed during last October’s 8^th Trilateral Summit in Nicosia, were I had the great pleasure to host my good friends President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis.

Allow me at this point to highlight the importance of our joint contribution towards regional architecture, a major investment, both for Cyprus and Egypt. I am referring specifically to the ongoing initiatives of establishing the EastMed Gas Forum and the Secretariat for trilateral mechanisms, based in Cairo and Nicosia respectively, which constitute testaments of our commitment towards peace and stability in our region.

At EU level, Cyprus has always been an avid proponent of the position that Egypt remains a source of stability and a strategic partner for the European Union. I would like to assure you that we remain a strong and ardent voice of support towards Egypt in Brussels.

It is now a common EU perception, that regional challenges like those in Syria and Libya cannot be addressed without the contribution of Egypt, whereas the same applies of course vis-à-vis the historically leading role of Egypt regarding the Middle East Peace Process. That being said, I would like to welcome the recent high-level visits of EU officials to Cairo, as they signify the aforesaid acknowledgement towards the regional importance of Egypt.

Excellency,

As regards the latest developments on the Cyprus Problem, following the recent election of the new Turkish Cypriot leader, I immediately wrote a letter to the UN Secretary-General through which I once again conveyed my readiness and determination to participate, the soonest possible, at a new initiative he might wish to undertake, based on the understanding reached with His Excellency and the leaders of the two communities on 25 November 2019 in Berlin (the six-point framework as presented at Crans Montana, the Joint Declaration of 11 February 2014 and the convergences reached during past negotiations).

Mr Guterres immediately responded through a similar letter addressed both to myself and Mr Tatar, with which he reiterated his readiness to continue his efforts towards resuming the negotiating process on the basis of the ongoing body of work, the mutual understanding achieved in Berlin and in line, of course, with the relevant UN Security Council resolutions.

At a first stage, his aim is to hold an informal 5+1 Conference at an appropriate stage, so as to assess whether the necessary conditions are in place to continue negotiations from where they were left off at Crans Montana. It is within this context that Ms Lute paid a visit to Cyprus on December and immediately thereafter to Athens.

In parallel to the above-mentioned, it is worth highlighting that, following my own initiative, on 3 November an informal meeting took place with Mr Tatar, during which we had the opportunity to hold an informal exchange of views on our vision for Cyprus and the prospect of resuming the process.

All this said, on our part and me personally, we hold the strong opinion that it would be essential to hold this informal Conference, for all sides, in the presence of the UN Secretary-General, to finally clarify their views and objectives as regards:

(a)  The basis for the resumption of the process;

(b)  The climate which should underpin the resumption of the process;

(c)  The envisioned form of the settlement.

Nonetheless, it is highly disheartening when, at the very moment that the UN Secretary-General informed of his readiness to prepare the ground for re-launching the negotiating process, Turkey responds with illegal and provocative actions either by the drilling operations within the Exclusive Economic Zone of the Republic of Cyprus or with the opening of the fenced area of Varosha in clear violation of international law and the UN Security Council resolutions 550 (1984) and 789 (1992), which call for the return and resettlement of the area by its rightful and lawful inhabitants. 

I do realise that you continue to keep the situation in Varosha under close watch, with the most recent episode being on 15 November, with the illegal visit of Mr Erdogan, accompanied by a large number of members of his cabinet and his government partner, the leader of the Nationalist Party in Turkey, in a, yet again, blatant disregard of the calls by the international community, the EU and the UN for Turkey to reverse its actions.

And I wish to be absolutely clear on this matter: As it is understandable, fully-fledged negotiations should be conducted on an equal-footing and not under conditions of intimidation and threats, in accordance with international law and the relevant UN Security-Council Resolutions.

In this respect, it would be impossible by anyone to expect that these conditions are fulfilled if any of the sides advocate solutions outside the UN established parameters or if Turkey and the Turkish Cypriot side proceed with their plans for the full opening of the fenced area of Varosha, either under Turkish military control or Turkish Cypriot administration, or continue with the violation of our sovereign rights in our Exclusive Economic Zone.

That is why I once again urge your Government to exert every effort so as for Turkey to alter its intransigent stance, reverse its unilateral and provocative actions and work for the easing of tensions in a consistent and sustained manner so as to establish a climate that is conducive to facilitating the resumption of the process. Only then will we have realistic prospects for success.

For us, our path forward is clear: Both the current unacceptable status quo - with the ongoing illegal occupation of 37% of the territory of the Republic of Cyprus following the Turkish military invasion and the violent displacement of 40% of our people - and any ideas that deviate from the established UN parameters, are neither viable nor sustainable.

Our vision and top priority remains none other than to reunify our island on the agreed basis of a bi-zonal and bi-communal federation as provided by UN Security Council resolutions, in order to establish a truly independent and sovereign state, free from foreign dependencies, guarantees, the right of military intervention or the presence of foreign troops.

Before concluding, I would be amiss if I did not take this opportunity to express our deep appreciation for your country’s steadfast support and principled position with regard to the Cyprus issue, especially within the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the United Nations.

We are also grateful for your country’s support in relation to Turkey’s continued illegal drilling operations in the maritime zones of the Republic of Cyprus, as well as its escalating provocations on the ground, in particular the opening of the fenced area of Varosha.

Excellency,

In closing, I welcome you once more to Cyprus and wish you every success in the performance of your high duties. I would be grateful if you could convey to the President, His Excellency Mr Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, and the people of the Arab Republic of Egypt, our warmest wishes for peace and prosperity”.

EH/SCh