Cyprus will open four new embassies this year, Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Theodoros Gotsis told the Cyprus News Agency (CNA).
According to Gotsis, Cyprus’ High Commission in Nairobi, Kenya, has already reopened in February, while a procedure is underway for the opening of embassies in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and in Manama, Bahrain – the only country of the Gulf where Cyprus has no diplomatic mission.
Also, the embassy of Cyprus in the capital of Indonesia, Jakarta will reopen in 2023.
Regarding the High Commission in Kenya, which reopened under diplomat Savvas Vladimirou, Gotsis noted that Nairobi is the seat of the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and the U.N. central regional office in Africa.
Moreover, he said that the Orthodox Church Of Kenya has its seat in Nairobi under the Cypriot Archbishop of Nairobi and Exarch of All Kenya Makarios Tillyrides, who is the patron of the “Makarios” Orphanage in Nyeri. The Republic of Cyprus has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Sophia for Children Foundation, to support the orphanage financially.
Gotsis also noted that the aim of opening an embassy in Argentina, is for Cyprus to have a stronger presence in South America, while the embassy in Jakarta is also significant as Indonesia is the biggest Islamic country in population in the world.
The Foreign Ministry’s spokesperson said that these developments are the result of the solution to a long-standing issue regarding the Ministry’s staffing, as 50 new posts were approved by the Ministry of Finance for the period 2021-2025.
Therefore, Gotsis explained that the number of Cypriot diplomats will be restored to pre-economic crisis levels.