Cyprus vows new approach on Ukraine talks ahead of EU presidency
Photo: Cyprus Foreign Minister Constantinos Kombos (Vitalii Nosach, RBC-Ukraine)
Cyprus, which will assume the EU presidency on January 1, 2026, has pledged to bring a "new approach" to Ukraine’s accession talks as well as to other key issues, including defense and migration, stated Cypriot Foreign Minister Constantinos Kombos, The Guardian reports.
Cyprus is one of the smallest EU member states, Kombos said. However, with its presidency of the EU, the country will cope in a disciplined, dedicated manner and with "a different mindset".
"We believe that small states have a lot to offer in these kind of situations. It’s a very different mindset that one can bring to the table, a different approach. As a small state, we are dedicated. We don’t see the presidency as something we have to do; we want to do it in the best possible way," the minister said.
Kombos also promised that the EU’s focus would remain firmly on Ukraine, which has been fighting Russia’s aggression for four years. Cyprus, he noted, knows well what military conflict and occupation mean, having experienced Türkiye’s invasion more than 50 years ago.
"The agenda is rightly about Ukraine, and it will remain so. But we want to bring into the mix issues relating to the wider Middle East region because we see Cyprus as being part of that region as well," he added.
The Türkiye issue
At the same time, there are concerns within the EU that Cyprus could clash with Türkiye during its presidency, given the existence on the island of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus — a self-declared entity recognized only by Ankara.
However, despite Cyprus previously blocking Türkiye’s participation in an EU joint defense procurement program, Kombos said Nicosia would not stand in the way of EU–Türkiye cooperation this time.
"The president has said very publicly that he would like to see President Erdoğan attend the informal council meeting in April. We are not going to use the presidency to raise national issues," the minister said.
Earlier, Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides also said that support for Ukraine would be one of the key priorities of Cyprus’s EU Council presidency, which begins on January 1.
In early December, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said during a joint press conference with Christodoulides that Cyprus would take over the EU presidency from Denmark in the first half of 2026, adding that the period could be pivotal for opening negotiating clusters for Ukraine.
