President Nikos Christodoulides on Thursday began a two-day official visit to Poland where he held meetings with the country’s leadership.

The president, accompanied by his spouse Philippa Karsera Christodoulides, was first received at an official welcome ceremony at the presidential palace in Warsaw.

He then held a private meeting with the Polish President Andrzej Duda, followed by extended talks between the delegations of the two countries.

Duda and Christodoulides discussed bilateral relations, tourism, investment, developments in the Cyprus problem, EU issues, regional relations and the Amalthea corridor.

A memorandum of understanding between the two countries in the field of sports was then signed, which was followed by statements from both to the media.

In their statement the Presidents of the two countries expressed their mutual will to further strengthen the already excellent relations between Cyprus and Poland.

Christodoulides said that the visit and discussion “aims to further strengthen our cooperation on many issues, especially on tourism, trade and investment, which in recent years have shown enviable prospects.”

The president also commented on the recent death of workers of an NGO delivering aid to Palestine, one of whom was Polish.

“In this context, let me express on behalf of the government and the Cypriot people, my sincere condolences to the families of Damien Sobol, a member of the NGO World Central Kitchen, who, along with six other people, lost his life on April 1, while carrying out his duty of delivering humanitarian aid to the civilian population of Gaza,” he said.

In his statements, Duda welcomed Christodoulides, who he said is the first president of Cyprus to visit Poland.

He also said that he briefed Christodoulides on the situation regarding the hosting of Ukrainian refugees and that they also discussed the situation in the Middle East.

He also thanked the Republic of Cyprus for the support of the president and the government in relation to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Referring to the Cyprus problem, Duda assured of his country’s position that the Cyprus problem should be resolved on the basis of UN resolutions.

He added that they also discussed issues on the European agenda including the upcoming EU elections.

Later Christodoulides attended a working lunch with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, while in the afternoon he will have a meeting with Parliament speaker Szymon Hołownia.

In the evening, Christodoulides and his wife along with members of the delegation attended an official dinner hosted by President Duda.

On May 24, Christodoulides will travel to Krakow where the Cypriot delegation will visit the Jagiellonian University.

The president will meet with the rector of the university and will address the students. This will be followed by a tour of the university museum.

Christodoulides and his entourage will also go to the historic centre of the city and visit Wawel Castle, while at noon they will attend a working lunch with the governor of Lesser Poland.

The president will be accompanied by Deputy Minister for European Affairs Marilena Raouna, deputy government spokesman Yiannis Antoniou and other officials.

The Cypriot delegation returns home on Friday evening.