King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima of the Netherlands begin a two-day state visit to Cyprus today, Tuesday, following an invitation extended by the President of the Republic, Nikos Christodoulides.
The royal couple arrived in Cyprus last night at Larnaca Airport and were welcomed by Deputy Minister of Culture Dr. Vasiliki Kassianidou.
It is the first time that the Dutch royal couple has visited Cyprus, a fact that is expected to mark the beginning of closer cooperation between the countries.
The official welcoming ceremony for King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima will take place at the Presidential Palace this morning.
A private meeting will follow at the presidential office, followed by expanded talks between the delegations of the two countries.
The agenda of the discussions will include issues of bilateral cooperation such as economy-investments, defense, shipping, education-student exchange (approximately 700-800 Cypriot students go to the Netherlands to study each year), issues of agricultural economy, archaeology and tourism. The discussions will also focus on regional developments in Ukraine and the Middle East, the Migration, the Cyprus and Euro-Turkish issues.
The Dutch royal couple will be accompanied by the Minister of Education, Epo Brans.
Following the expanded talks between the delegations, the President of the Republic and the King of the Netherlands will make statements to the media.
The royal couple will then proceed to the House of Representatives, where they will be welcomed by the Speaker of the House, Annita Demetriou, and will then visit the Search and Rescue Coordination Center (SRC) in Larnaca, where they will be welcomed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Konstantinos Kompos.
Early in the afternoon, the royal couple will travel to Xylofagou, where the Minister of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment Dr. Maria Panayiotou will give them a tour of potato plantations, and will then accompany them to Liopetri, where they will visit the facilities of a potato production company.
In the evening, the President of the Republic and the First Lady will host an official dinner in honor of the Dutch royal couple, at the Presidential Palace.
Contacts and meetings on Wednesday
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On Wednesday, March 5, the President of the Republic and the First Lady will travel with the Royal Couple to the Nicosia Municipal Hall, where they will be welcomed by Mayor Charalambos Prountzos and will then tour the old city along the ceasefire line and visit the Church of Panagia Faneromeni.
The Royal Couple will then proceed to the House of Cooperation, where they will meet graduates of Dutch universities.
They will then proceed to the archaeological site of Choirokitia, where they will be welcomed by Deputy Minister of Culture Vasiliki Kassianidou.
It is noted that currently, Dutch archaeologists from the University of Leiden, where the King studied, are carrying out excavations at the Palloures site in Chloraka.
On Wednesday afternoon, the King and Queen will go to the THOK building where, together with the President of the Republic, the First Lady and other dignitaries, they will attend a concert with Dutch and Cypriot artists, which the royal couple is organizing in honor of President Christodoulides and his wife, in return for the hospitality.
The royal couple will depart Cyprus late Wednesday evening.
During the private meeting of the royal couple with the President of the Republic, in the presence of the First Lady on Tuesday, there will be a mutual awarding and exchange of gifts.
While the expanded talks between the delegations of the two states are taking place, the Queen of the Netherlands will be given a tour by the First Lady of the Presidential Palace Garden, which over the last two years has been transformed into a model organic farm, within the framework of a European Cross-Border Cooperation program.
