His Excellency
Nikos Christodoulides
Νίκος Χριστοδουλίδης
Christodoulides in 2023
8th President of Cyprus
Assumed office
28 February 2023
Preceded byNicos Anastasiades
Minister of Foreign Affairs
In office
1 March 2018 – 11 January 2022
PresidentNicos Anastasiades
Preceded byIoannis Kasoulidis
Succeeded byIoannis Kasoulidis
Spokesman of the Government
In office
14 April 2014 – 28 February 2018
Preceded byChristos Stylianides
Succeeded byProdromos Prodromou
Personal details
Born (1973-12-06) 6 December 1973
Geroskipou, Cyprus
Political partyIndependent
Other political
affiliations		Democratic Rally (until 2023)
SpousePhilippa Karsera
Children4
Alma mater
OccupationPolitician, diplomat
ProfessionHistorian, political scientist
Awards Order of Makarios III (Grand Master)
Order of Merit of the Republic of Cyprus
Signature

Nikos Christodoulides (Greek: Νίκος Χριστοδουλίδης; born 6 December 1973)[1] is a Cypriot politician, former diplomat and academic, and the 8th and current President of Cyprus. He previously served as Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2018 to 2022 and Spokesman of the Government from 2014 to 2018, under President Nicos Anastasiades.

Christodoulides started his career as a diplomat in 1999 and also worked as a lecturer and researcher at the University of Cyprus from 2007 to 2010. He then served in the second-term government of President Anastasiades, until resigning in January 2022 in order to run in the 2023 Cypriot presidential election. He defeated Andreas Mavroyiannis in the run-off and assumed office on 28 February 2023, becoming the island's first leader to be born in an independent Cyprus.

Early life and education

Christodoulides was born in 1973 in Geroskipou, Paphos district, to a Greek Cypriot family. His father is from the village of Choulou and his mother's family is from Geroskipou.

He graduated from the Archbishop Makarios III Lyceum in Paphos in 1991,[2] and completed his compulsory 2-year military service in the Cypriot National Guard in 1993.

Christodoulides attended Queens College, City University of New York, majoring in Political Science, Economics, Byzantine and Modern Greek Studies, before graduating in 1997. He then pursued postgraduate studies in Political Science at New York University and in Diplomatic Studies at the Mediterranean Academy of Diplomatic Studies (MEDAC), University of Malta.[3]

Christodoulides earned a PhD in Political Science and Public Administration from the University of Athens in 2003.[4]

Career before presidency

Academic

Christodoulides lectured and worked as a non-tenure track research associate in the Department of History and Archeology at the University of Cyprus. He taught on the "History of the Postwar World".[3]

Diplomat

Christodoulides entered diplomatic service in 1999. He held various posts, including Director of the Office of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Spokesman of the Cyprus Presidency to the Council of the European Union in Brussels, Deputy Chief of Mission at the Embassy of Cyprus to Greece, Director of the Office of the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Consul-General of the High Commission of the Republic of Cyprus to the United Kingdom. Between 2013 and 2018, he served as Director of the Diplomatic Office of the President of the Republic of Cyprus.[4]

Spokesman of Government

Christodoulides was appointed Government Spokesman on 14 April 2014. He stepped down upon the conclusion of President Anastasiades's first term on 28 February 2018.

Minister of Foreign Affairs

Christodoulides meets President Reuven Rivlin on 22 March 2018
Christodoulides and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in November 2018

On 1 March 2018, after the re-election of President Anastasiades, Christodoulides was appointed to the Cabinet as Minister of Foreign Affairs.[5] On 6 March 2018, he stated that Nicosia would not be swayed by Turkey's incursions into the Exclusive Economic Zone of Cyprus. During a meeting on Greek-Cypriot cooperation with Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, he said that the "number one goal is the reunification of the country."[6]

In May 2018, Christodoulides officially asked the United Nations to prepare for a speedy resumption of the reunification process. After meeting Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias on 7 May 2018, he praised Secretary-General António Guterres for despatching a UN Special Representative to sound out the atmosphere for resuming talks.[7]

In June 2018, he visited Israel and met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Reuven Rivlin. They discussed regional developments and the strengthening of bilateral ties in energy and emergency situations. They also discussed Turkish incursions and strategic cooperation on the planned EastMed pipeline.[8] In June 2018, Christodoulides welcomed an announcement by ExxonMobil executives to speed up their schedule to begin drilling operations in Block 10 of the Exclusive Economic Zone. Operations were planned to begin in the fourth quarter of 2018 but[9] commenced in 2021.

On 17 July 2018, he met EU High Representative Federica Mogherini in Brussels. They discussed the potential role of the EU in resuming stalled peace talks with Turkey. During his visit, Christodoulides stated that Cyprus does "not have the luxury of a new talks' failure" and that "Turkey has to comply with European standards and international law."[10]

On 15 July 2020, he commented on the 2020 Armenian–Azerbaijani clashes, condemning the "ceasefire violation by Azerbaijan" and calling for "restraint of the parties to de-escalate the tension in the region".[11]

Christodoulides was made a Knight of the Holy Sepulchre in 2018 and was awarded the Order of the Serbian Flag on 5 April 2021 by President Aleksandar Vučić.[12]

2023 Presidential election

Christodoulides with Israeli President Isaac Herzog in Jerusalem, on 11 May 2023

After months of speculation on whether he would run in the 2023 Cypriot presidential election, Christodoulides expressed his interest at a press conference held at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on 9 January.[13] The next day, he resigned as Minister and was replaced by veteran politician Ioannis Kasoulides on 11 January 2022.[14]

In June 2022, he formally announced his candidacy as an independent candidate, despite being a member of DISY, which fielded Averof Neofytou as its presidential nominee. On 5 January 2023, following the official filing of his candidacy, he was formally ejected from DISY by the party's governing body.[15]

Christodoulides gathered support from smaller parties, including DIKO, EDEK and DIPA,[5] while managing to sway a large portion of DISY supporters.[16] He won the first round of the presidential election with 32.04% of vote, and was thereafter backed by President Anastasiades.[17] After winning the second round with 51.92% of the vote, against the 48.08% of AKEL-backed independent Andreas Mavroyiannis, Christodoulides was declared president-elect.[18]

He was inaugurated on 28 February 2023.

Presidency

Cyprus problem

Christodoulides declared that his primary focus was finding a solution to the Cyprus problem.[19] In order to restart the negotiations between the two sides, he requested the appointment of a UN special envoy. His proposal was accepted by Antonio Guterres, who appointed the Colombian diplomat Maria-Angela Cuellar with the aim of facilitating the diplomatic process. Cuellar will arrive in Cyprus after January 27, 2024. She has already met with Colin Stewart, Cyprus' permanent UN representative in New York, and is planning visits to the guarantor power countries (Greece, Turkey, and the UK).[20][21]

Amalthea Initiative

At the 2023 Paris Peace Forum, organized by the French President Emmanuel Macron, Nikos Christodoulides presented his initiative to open a maritime corridor between Cyprus and Gaza, intending to deliver aid to the Gaza strip during the 2023 Israel-Hamas war. Due to the small distance between Cyprus and the conflict zone, Christodoulides suggested utilizing Larnaca port for shipping significant amounts of humanitarian relief to Gaza by sea. The aid would be collected, inspected, and stored in Cyprus. After daily checks by a joint committee, including Israel, the aid would be sent to Gaza. The vessels would be accompanied by warships and would arrive at a designated neutral area on the coast of Gaza.[22][23]

Christodoulides visited Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and King Abdullah of Jordan to inform them about his proposed humanitarian corridor, while also discussing it with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz over the phone.[24][25]

The initiative received positive recognition from the international community and gained approval from the Israeli government.[26] While the direct maritime corridor between Cyprus and the Gaza Strip has not been established, on January 1st, 2024, Cyprus and the UK collaborated to successfully send 87 tonnes of aid to Gaza through the Port Said in Egypt. The aid was then transferred through the Rafah border, without security checks in Israel.[27]

Personal life

Christodoulides is married to Philippa Karsera, a Greek Cypriot diplomat from Dora. They met in 1999 as newly appointed diplomatic attachés in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Philippa served at the Cypriot High Commission in London and then at the Embassy in Athens and the Permanent Representation of Cyprus to the European Union in Brussels. She was then promoted Deputy Director of the President's Diplomatic Office at the Presidential Palace, Nicosia. Styled Minister Plenipotentiary. From February 2022, she led the crisis management directorate in the Cyprus Ministry of Foreign Affairs.[4][28]

The couple have four children together.

Publications

Christodoulides has contributed to domestic and international academic journals and is the author of two books: Plans for Solution of the Cyprus Problem 1948–1978 published in 2009,[29] and Relations between Athens and Nicosia and the Cyprus Problem 1977–1988 published in 2013.[30][4]

Honours and awards

References

  1. ↑ "Christodoulides Nikos – Thessaloniki Summit".
  2. ↑ "Νίκος Χριστοδουλίδης, ο θιασώτης του ορθολογισμού". philenews.com (in Greek). ΦΙΛΕΛΕΥΘΕΡΟΣ ΔΗΜΟΣΙΑ ΕΤΑΙΡΕΙΑ ΛΙΜΙΤΕΔ. 13 February 2023. Retrieved 17 November 2023.
  3. 1 2 "Director, Diplomatic Office of the President of the Republic of Cyprus". concordia.net. Retrieved 7 October 2018.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "Minister, Curriculum Vitae". Foreign Ministry of the Republic of Cyprus. Retrieved 7 October 2018.
  5. 1 2 "New cabinet announced". Cyprus Mail. 13 February 2018. Retrieved 7 October 2018.
  6. ↑ "Provocations in EEZ dominate Christodoulides' contacts in Athens". Cyprus Mail. 6 March 2018. Retrieved 7 October 2018.
  7. ↑ "Zypern bittet UN um sofortige Hilfe bei Wiedervereinigungsbemühungen" [Cyprus asks UN for immediate help in re-union endeavor] (in German). Handelsblatt. 7 May 2018. Retrieved 7 October 2018.
  8. ↑ "Netanyahu and Christodoulides discuss regional developments". Cyprus Mail. 22 March 2018. Retrieved 7 October 2018.
  9. ↑ "Christodoulides welcomes Exxon's intention to speed up drilling plans". Cyprus Mail. 10 June 2018. Retrieved 7 October 2018.
  10. ↑ "Christodoulides and Mogherini discuss EU role in efforts to resume Cyprus talks". Cyprus Mail. 17 July 2018. Retrieved 7 October 2018.
  11. ↑ Christodoulides, Nikos (15 July 2020). "Statement of the Cyprus Ministry of Foreign Affairs". www.pio.gov.cy. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Cyprus. Archived from the original on 15 July 2020.
  12. ↑ "Vučić uručio orden šefu kiparske diplomatije Hristodulidisu". rts.rs (in Serbian). RTS. 5 April 2021.
  13. ↑ "Κύπρος – Παραιτήθηκε ο Νίκος Χριστοδουλίδης από υπουργός Εξωτερικών". 9 January 2022.
  14. ↑ "Minister – MFA".
  15. ↑ "Christodoulides struck from DISY party register". cyprus-mail.com. 5 January 2023. Retrieved 6 February 2023.
  16. ↑ Mavroudis, Christodoulos (6 July 2022). "New poll shows Christodoulides ahead in presidential race". Cyprus Mail. Retrieved 19 February 2023.
  17. ↑ "Ex-minister Christoulides wins Cyprus presidential election". AP News. 12 February 2023. Retrieved 12 February 2023.
  18. ↑ Kambas, Michele (12 February 2023). "Former Cyprus foreign minister wins presidential election". Reuters. Retrieved 12 February 2023.
  19. ↑ "'Cyprus problem' top priority for island's new president". Reuters. Nicosia. 28 February 2023. Archived from the original on 28 February 2023. Retrieved 28 February 2023.
  20. ↑ "UN envoy has already begun Cyprus contacts | Cyprus Mail". https://cyprus-mail.com/. 13 January 2024. Retrieved 13 January 2024. {{cite web}}: External link in |website= (help)
  21. ↑ Solutions, BDigital Web. "UN's new special envoy heads to Cyprus in early February". knews.com.cy. Retrieved 13 January 2024.
  22. ↑ "EU throws weight behind Cypriot plan to ship aid to Gaza". POLITICO. 9 November 2023. Retrieved 13 January 2024.
  23. ↑ "Cyprus outlines plan for maritime corridor to get aid to Gaza". 9 November 2023.
  24. ↑ "Cyprus pushes Gaza corridor idea; leader to visit Egypt, Jordan". 4 December 2023.
  25. ↑ "Cyprus, France launch diplomatic marathon for Gaza humanitarian corridor initiative". in-cyprus.philenews.com. 13 January 2024. Retrieved 13 January 2024.
  26. ↑ "Cyprus' aid corridor to Gaza opens (updated) | Cyprus Mail". https://cyprus-mail.com/. 18 December 2023. Retrieved 13 January 2024. {{cite web}}: External link in |website= (help)
  27. ↑ Kambas, Michele (2 January 2024). "Screened in Cyprus, British and Cypriot aid heads to Gaza via Egypt".
  28. ↑ "Philippa Karsera: The career diplomat, she now holds the title of Minister Plenipotentiary, who will also be Cyprus' new First Lady from March 1 2023. (PHOTO)". in-cyprus.philenews.com. Retrieved 19 February 2023.
  29. ↑ Christodoulides, Nikos (2009). Τα σχέδια λύσης του κυπριακού, 1948–1978 [Plans for Solution of the Cyprus Problem 1948–1978] (in Greek). Athens: Ekdoseis Kastaniōtē. ISBN 9789600349948.
  30. ↑ Christodoulides, Nikos (2013). Οι σχέσεις Αθηνών-Λευκωσίας και το Κυπριακό, 1977-1988 [Relations Between Athens and Nicosia and the Cyprus Problem, 1977–1988] (in Greek). Athens: I. Siderēs. ISBN 9789600806007.
  31. ↑ "Visit of the Minister of Foreign Affairs to the State of Israel".
  32. ↑ Infor
  33. ↑ Cypr24
  34. ↑ Politika
  35. ↑ Parikiaki
  36. ↑ "Παρασημοφόρησε τον ΠτΔ η Σακελαροπούλου (εικόνες & βίντεο)". www.philenews.com. 13 March 2023.
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