Biden to Host President of Cyprus at White House After 28-Year Hiatus

© PHOTO: GANP/Dimitrios Panagos

WASHINGTON, DC – by Petros Kasfikis

Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides is set to meet with President Biden at the White House on Wednesday, marking the first official visit by a Cypriot leader to the U.S. capital in nearly three decades.

The meeting in the Oval Office is expected to underscore the deepening strategic ties between Cyprus and the United States.

According to diplomatic sources, the visit follows recent progress in U.S.-Cyprus relations, including the launch of a strategic dialogue held in Nicosia last week and the signing of a new defense cooperation agreement with the Pentagon earlier this year.

The U.S. Embassy in Cyprus has been instrumental in fostering these closer ties, with Ambassador Julie Fisher playing a key role in arranging the upcoming White House meeting.

Sources close to the discussions suggest that the invitation is intended to reflect Cyprus’s growing importance as a strategic partner for the U.S. in the Eastern Mediterranean.

This growing partnership was underscored by President Biden in his recent State of the Union address, where he praised Cyprus’s role in facilitating a humanitarian corridor to deliver aid to Gaza.

The President of Cyprus Glafcos Clerides met with President Bill Clinton at The White House on June 17h, 1996 in Washington, USA © PHOTOS: GANP/Dimitrios Panagos

The President of Cyprus George Vassiliou met with President George Bush at The White House on May 30th, 1991 in Washington, USA © PHOTOS: GANP/Dimitrios Panagos

This will be the first visit by a Cypriot president to the White House since June 1996, when President Glafcos Clerides met with President Bill Clinton. The renewed high-level engagement highlights the evolving partnership between the two countries, driven by shared security interests and mutual support for stability in the region.

Petros Kasfikis is an accredited correspondent covering the White House, State Department, and Capitol Hill for MEGA TV and newspaper To Vima. For the latest political developments from Washington, D.C., you can subscribe to his YouTube channel: youtube.com/c/PKas?sub_confirmation=1