Honorary distinctions will be awarded to President Nicos Anastasiades in the coming week, a few days before the end of his administration, his office announced on Saturday.

He will also host a dinner in honour of ambassadors based in Cyprus and will also receive the credentials of the new US ambassador to the island.

A written statement by the Director of the President’s Press Office, Andreas Iosif, said the honorary distinctions were being awarded for Anastasiades’ “significant contribution to the country and appreciation for the work he has done during his decade-long administration”.

Nikos Christodoulides will be sworn in as new President of the Republic on February 28 after securing 51.9 per cent of the vote during last Sunday’s runoff.

On Monday, the Cyprus Chamber of Commerce and Industry will host lunch in Anastasiades’ honour and on Tuesday he will be honoured by the Employers and Industrialists Federation where he is expected to refer to the crucial contribution of employers’ organisations, as well as other social partners, in the economic rescue of the country in 2013, in the management of the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic and in addressing the consequences of the Russian invasion in Ukraine.

Earlier on Tuesday he will receive the credentials of the new US Ambassador in Nicosia, Julie Fischer.

The statement notes that bilateral cooperation between Cyprus and the US during the Anastasiades administration has gained a special and continuous strengthened dynamic, and as a result they are “at the highest level ever.” “The relations between both countries have a strategic nature, both on a bilateral and multilateral level, with both countries working closely to face the serious challenges in Eastern Mediterranean and promoting peace, security and stability in the region,” Iosif’s statement said.

On Wednesday, the cabinet will convene for its last session before the new cabinet takes over on March 1.

The outgoing president will also meet with the Pancyprian Organisation of the Relatives of Undeclared Prisoners and Missing Person which will also honour him.

On Thursday, he will be honoured by FICAC, the World Federation of Consuls. The President will then host a lunch for the ambassadors on the occasion of the completion of his term of office.