_: Prominent members of the diaspora were honored in New York on Friday evening, during a gathering of the Cypriot diaspora organized by Cypriot organizations at the 'Terrace on the Park' community events venue. President of the Republic Nikos Christodoulides attended the event, accompanied by Foreign Minister Constantinos Kombos, Government Spokesman Konstantinos Letymbiotis, Ambassador of the Republic of Cyprus to Washington Evangelos Savva and Permanent Representative of Cyprus to the United Nations Ambassador Maria Michael. During the event, awards were presented to prominent members of the diaspora. Despina Axiotakis and Stavros Kamilaris received Community Service Awards, while John Josephakis, Global Vice President at NVIDIA, was presented with the Lifetime Achievement Award. President of the Federation of Cypriot American Organizations (FCAO) Kyriakos Papastylianou referred to the strong bond between the Cypriot diaspora and Cyprus, efforts to resume negotiations on the Cyprus problem, as well as t he further expansion of relations between Cyprus and the United States. Welcoming President of the Republic Nikos Christodoulides, Papastylianou stressed that geographical distance does not weaken the ties of Cypriots abroad with Cyprus. Referring to Cyprus-US relations in the fields of defense, security, the economy, investment and technology, he highlighted the role that the Cypriot community can play. For his part, President of PSEKA Philip Christopher referred to the decisive contribution of the organized diaspora. He recalled that the Federation of Cypriot American Organizations was founded in 1951 and said that since then the Cypriot community has been working for 'freedom and justice' in Cyprus. Christopher said that 'for the first time we can say that the Republic of Cyprus is a strong strategic partner of America,' placing particular emphasis on cooperation among Greek Cypriot and Greek American organizations. Also attending the event were Greece's Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Aglaia Balta, and Greece's Consul General in New York, Ambassador Ifigenia Kanara.