Nicosia: Despite the difficulties and the intransigent Turkish stance, we remain committed and will do everything possible in the great effort to reunify Cyprus, President Nikos Christodoulides said Saturday, addressing the event ‘Your Europe, Your Future: A Dialogue with Youth’, on the occasion of Europe Day, held at the CYENS Centre of Excellence in Nicosia.
According to Cyprus News Agency, addressing students, both Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots, and representatives of youth organizations from across Cyprus who attended the event for a conversation with President Christodoulides and the President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, who is in Cyprus for a short visit, the President of the Republic noted that May 9 – Europe Day – is a day ‘with special historical and political symbolism’.
‘It is a day dedicated to peace, democracy and unity on the European continent. To the fundamental principles and values of the European Union – solidarity, cooperation, mutual respect, and dialogue’, he said. He noted that the event was also special due to the presence of the President of the European Parliament, who, as he noted, was the head ‘of an institution that directly expresses the will of the citizens of the Union, all of us, and which guarantees its democratic character’.
Her presence in Cyprus, on Europe Day, said President Christodoulides, was yet another proof ‘of the EU’s long-standing support and solidarity towards our country’. Addressing Metsola, he said that her visit ‘takes on even greater significance at this particular juncture, in which, with the support of the European Union and as a result of the persistent efforts of our government, we have managed, after years of stagnation, to achieve mobility on the Cyprus issue.’
‘Despite the difficulties, despite the challenges, despite the intransigent Turkish stance, we remain committed and will do everything possible in the great effort to reunify Cyprus, in accordance with the resolutions of the United Nations Security Council and based on the principles and values of the European Union,’ he added. President Christodoulides thanked Metsola ‘for her friendship and long-standing support – both hers personally and that of the European Parliament – towards Cyprus and towards the efforts we are making to reunify our homeland’.
He also told Metsola that her presence in Cyprus on this day was ‘both timely and symbolic – a reminder that even in Europe’s farthest corners, the European Union is present and engaged. That, from Brussels to Nicosia, every voice is heard, and especially that of young people’. Referring to the CYENS Centre of Excellence, which is located, as he noted, ‘a mere few meters from the Green Line, in the historic center of the capital’, President Christodoulides said that with its operation it has revitalized the area and it greatly contributes to its development as a hub of innovative entrepreneurship, ‘a sector in which both the Government and the EU systematically invest.’
He also said that CYENS’ initiatives strengthen cooperation and coexistence between Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots through European programs, ‘making it another tangible example of how the EU has the power to build bridges, to unite’. Noting that the event was dedicated to young people, he said that the presence of students from 10 different public and private universities in the country, Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots, as well as representatives of youth organizations from all over Cyprus, was ‘of exceptional importance.’ ‘Because you, the young men and women of our country, are at the center of our efforts as Government’ but also of the ‘national mission’, that of the Cyprus Presidency of the Council of the EU in 2026.
The Government has placed the new generation and its empowerment at the forefront of its actions, he also said. President Christodoulides also referred to Cyprus’ accession to the EU, noting that 21 years ‘after that historic fifth enlargement of the EU, we can say with certainty that the membership has transformed our country: It has modernized our state and institutions, upgraded our position internationally and improved our daily lives in all areas’. Our participation in the great European family has offered us solidarity and support in times of crisis and great challenges, it offers us security, stability, and prosperity, he added.
He also noted that 21 years later, ‘we are preparing to take over the Presidency of the Council of the EU as a mature member state, with self-confidence and expertise’. ‘As the EU’s southeasternmost member state, Cyprus has its own perspective and geostrategic importance, which we will be able to further highlight by strengthening the EU’s relations with the Southern Neighbourhood, as well as our role as a bridge between the EU and our wider region,’ he added.
At the same time, he added, ‘we are well aware of the challenges facing the new generation – the issues that concern you. Economic security, access to employment, education and skills development, mobility, entrepreneurship, innovation, affordable housing, security, migration, the Cyprus issue.’ These are precisely the issues that lie at the core of our policies as Government, he said, adding that these were also the major challenges that the European Union itself was called upon to manage. ‘Challenges that we will have the responsibility to manage during our Presidency, by formulating proposals and policies, always in close cooperation with our co-legislator, the European Parliament, with the common European interest as the sole guiding principle, and for the benefit of all citizens,’ he said.
President Christodoulides said that young people constitute 25% of Europe’s population, but they represent 100% of its future and that is why their voice ought to be heard and taken seriously. Metsola in her own address said that Cyprus was at the center of Europe, while also expressing her commitment to President Christodoulides and the House of Representatives that the EU will always support Cyprus in resolving the Cyprus problem within the framework of UN resolutions, through dialogue and joint steps.
Every 9th of May we gather and say that the EU emerged from the ashes of war and was created to bring people together, not to separate them, Metsola also said, noting that this was a mission ‘that we will never give up on’. She also noted that Europe was a Union that looks to the future and to the past and that the new generation will help the EU move forward with its energy, boldness and honesty. Metsola also urged the students to speak their mind, be curious, and get involved.
Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when Turkey invaded and occupied its northern third. Repeated rounds of UN-led peace talks have so far failed to yield results due to Turkish intransigence. The latest round of negotiations, in July 2017 at the Swiss resort of Crans-Montana ended inconclusively. UN Secretary General Ant³nio Guterres announced that an informal meeting on Cyprus in a broader format will be held at the end of July, following a similar meeting in Geneva, on March 17-18. The two sides agreed to proceed with a number of initiatives, involving the opening of crossing points, the creation of a Technical Committee on Youth and other initiatives in the buffer zone and throughout the island.
Guterres announced in early May the appointment of Mara Angela Holgun Cu©llar of Colombia as his Personal Envoy on Cyprus, who is tasked to reengage with the parties in order to work on next steps on the Cyprus issue and advise him. Holgun completed a previous assignment as Personal Envoy of the Secretary-General on Cyprus from January to July 2024.