Foreign Minister visits UAE, Saudi Arabia

Cyprus Foreign Minister Nikos Christodoulides is on a key mini-Middle East tour with consecutive working visits to the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia.

Christodoulides was in Abu Dhabi on Monday for a private meeting with Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of the United Arab Emirates, Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

Discussions are focusing on issues related to the bilateral relations, the Cyprus problem, the latest developments in the Eastern Mediterranean, the Middle East and the Gulf region, regional cooperation and security, and EU-UAE relations.

In Abu Dhabi, Christodoulides will meet the Speaker of the Federal National Council, Saqr Ghobash to discuss regional and international issues of common interest.

On Tuesday, the Foreign Minister will visit Riyadh to meet his Saudi Arabian counterpart, Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud.

The two sides are expected to discuss concrete ways of further enhancing the bilateral cooperation between Cyprus and Saudi Arabia, the Cyprus problem, the situation in the broader region and the EU relations of the EU with the Kingdom.

Later Tuesday, Christodoulides will meet the Secretary-General of the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf, Dr Nayef Falah M. Al-Hajraf on prospects for cooperation in the broader Gulf region.

Cyprus has focused on bolstering its regional ties with Gulf and Arab states in recent years based on energy exploration and its EU membership.