Leo Docherty MP visited Cyprus this week in his role as Minister for Europe to deepen the close ties between the UK and Cyprus and thanks British Armed Forces for their role in the evacuation efforts from Sudan.
The UK has a strong and diverse trading market with Cyprus, with £1.6 billion in UK exports alone to the island in 2022 from motor vehicles and parts, spirits, pharmaceuticals, food ingredients and clothing, and over a million Brits going on holiday to the island every year.
During his visit, Leo met with Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides to thank him for his country's contribution and co-operation in the evacuation of British and Cypriot nationals out of Sudan, the largest and longest evacuation effort of any Western nation. The two Sovereign Base Areas (SBA) in Cyprus, Akrotiri and Dhekelia, Britain operates in Cyprus played a fundamental role in the evacuation efforts.
The SBAs enable the UK to maintain a strategic location at the eastern end of the Mediterranean, for use as a staging point for forces sent to locations in the Middle East and Asia. These bases host a number of units from the British Army, Royal Air Force and Royal Navy, allowing British soldiers to serve with the United Nations peacekeeping forces in Cyprus (UNFICYP) on Operation TOSCA, which is responsible for maintaining the integrity of the buffer zone between the Greek and Turkish Cypriots.
In a meeting with Cypriot Foreign Minister Constantinos Kombos, they discussed how the two nations can look to build upon the Memorandum of Understanding signed last year. This is a commitment between the two countries to boost collaboration on foreign policy, security, science, climate and trade.
Commenting, Leo said:
"The UK and Cyprus are close friends and partners in the Commonwealth, and we share a very unique and strong bond.
"Our strong co-operation with Cyprus was crucial to the safe evacuation of 2,450 people from Sudan, and I was able to personally thank the efforts of our Armed Forces personnel at the Sovereign Base Areas for their work."
Leo pictured with British Armed Forces at the Sovereign Base Areas, and pictured with President Nikos Christodoulides