The visit of the Dutch royal couple to Cyprus is an important message with many implications, said the President of the Republic, Nikos Christodoulides, on Wednesday, speaking to journalists, after he and his wife toured the Dutch royal couple along the ceasefire line in old Nicosia.
Asked about the impressions the Dutch royal couple gained from semi-occupied Nicosia, the President of the Republic said that he considers the presence, for the first time, of the royal couple in Cyprus to be significant.
"The Netherlands is a country with which in recent years significant work has been done to strengthen our relations," he noted. "Traditionally, historically, there have not been such strong ties," the President of the Republic pointed out, adding that the royal couple's visit "is an important message with many implications for our bilateral relations, but also for the promotion of our country as a tourist destination and for many other things."
President Christodoulides recalled that the program of visits by foreign dignitaries to Cyprus includes a special visit to old Nicosia, in order to walk next to the buffer zone, explaining that the King of the Netherlands conveyed to him the message that "it is very different to read and very different to see this situation."
Furthermore, the President of the Republic noted the parallelism of the division of Nicosia made by the King of the Netherlands with the Berlin Wall, taking into account that his family lived in Germany.
"I consider it particularly important that we started this institution, for all foreign leaders to come here to see this situation," he concluded.
For his part, the Mayor of Nicosia, Charalambos Prountzos, stated that the royal couple suffered the unacceptable situation due to the division of the city, adding that "it is something that only if someone sees it, they can realize."
"The royal couple understood the situation on the ground. Their surprise and sadness at what they saw was obvious," Mr. Prountzos pointed out, adding that "but they also saw the historicity of our city, they saw the new, they saw the dynamics of a European capital."
"What we want them to take with them is the need to end this unacceptable state of affairs in our semi-occupied city," he concluded.
The Dutch royal couple and the Cypriot presidential couple arrived at Nicosia City Hall on Wednesday morning, where they were welcomed by the Mayor of Nicosia, Charalambos Prountzos, and his wife, Gogo Alexandrinou, accompanied by the Minister of Education, Sports and Youth, Dr. Athina Michaelidou. The royal couple went to the roof of the City Hall, from where they saw Nicosia from above and were informed by the Mayor of Nicosia about the Turkish occupation.
Afterwards, the royal couple walked along the green line in Old Nicosia to end up at Faneromeni Square, where they were welcomed by children attending the Faneromeni Public Kindergarten who sang a popular Cypriot song.
Afterwards, the royal couple returned to Nicosia City Hall, from where they departed.
This was followed by a discussion with graduates of Dutch universities at the House of Cooperation in the Nicosia buffer zone.
Source: KYPE
