The presence of permanently active French military forces in the Eastern Mediterranean would not be possible without Cyprus, a strong friend and partner of the French armed forces, Ambassador of France to Cyprus, Clélia Chevrier Kolačko told the Cyprus News Agency (CNA) in an interview published on Sunday.

 “Cyprus is a key strategic partner for us in the field of defence,” she specified. Invited to say if Cyprus could become a NATO member the Ambassador noted that the North-Atlantic Alliance maintains an open-door policy, recalling that France is a founding member of both NATO and the EU.

“I would like to emphasize that we already value the participation of Cyprus in EU security and defence policies. We believe that a stronger, more operational European defence contributes positively to global and transatlantic security and is complementary to and interoperable with NATO. At the moment, France stands ready to accompany Cyprus within the strategic autonomy agenda and the strategic compass that was elaborated during the French Presidency of the EU, back in 2022,” she added.

As she said “we are exercising with your forces, we are working on materiel interoperability and we are also working closely with the Cypriot army on EU defence policies. So, there is already a very close relationship”.

“We also value the participation of Cyprus within the Aspides operation launched by the European Union in the Red Sea. It is a good example of what the EU can do. To strengthen its presence in the region, France stands ready to help Cyprus reinforcing the interoperability of its armed forces, which amongst other benefits, enables secure information exchange and helps our efforts to combat terrorism and to manage regional conflicts.

Asked about the current state of affairs regarding the bilateral relations between Cyprus and France in various fields such as politics, defence, energy, economy, and education, and the prospects of further strengthening them, the French Ambassador said that relations between France and Cyprus are very dense and dynamic, adding that they want to bring them to the next level.

She recalled that since she assumed her position in Cyprus, late August, the President of France, two French Ministers and a delegation of the European Αffairs Committee of the French Senate visited Cyprus while Cyprus Minister of Defense went to Paris to meet his counterpart.

“I believe the foundation of our relationship is shared values, which bring trust, and a common willingness to address common global challenges. Cyprus and France are key partners in essential areas,” she stressed.

With regard to security she noted that “Cyprus is a key strategic partner for us in the field of defence. The presence of permanently active French military forces in the Eastern Mediterranean would not be possible without Cyprus, a strong friend and partner of the French armed forces, with which we hold an annual quadrilateral exercise, EUNOMIA, jointly with Greece and Italy.”

Moreover, she said that Cyprus and France are working jointly towards the strengthening of the European defence industry. We also collaborate extensively in the field of security, in particular through close cooperation between our police forces, she added.

Where economic cooperation is concerned, she remarked that key French companies are in Cyprus, investing or franchising in strategic sectors like in energy with Total or tourism with Accor Hotels and others. She said that new areas of economic cooperation include renewable energy, innovation and digital technologies. The number of French tourists in Cyprus is also on the rise, something which opens up opportunities, in addition to a local community of French people that is very active, she noted.

Furthermore, Chevrier Kolačko noted that French is now taught to all students in public high schools, while Cyprus has become a member of the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie, a powerful organization with a reach of more than 320 million French speakers across five continents. She said the French-Cypriot school of Nicosia is flourishing and the new school branch in Limassol is growing rapidly, while we see that the number of Cypriot students interested in studying in France is increasing.

“What we are about to do is bring this relationship to the next level. When they met in Paphos in October, President Macron and President Christodoulides agreed to anchor this relationship in very concrete, long-term actions, and work towards a strategic partnership to bring our bilateral cooperation to a new level in many areas of cooperation,” the Ambassador said.

Asked about the views of France, an EU partner of Cyprus and a permanent member of the UN Security Council, on the current situation with regard to the Cyprus problem and efforts to resume the negotiations and invited to comment on the Turkish side’s insistence to a two-state solution, the French Ambassador said that “we are ready to assist Cyprus on its way to build a fair, lasting and viable solution based on a bizonal, bicommunal federation where decision making is shared according to the principle of political equality in accordance with the relevant resolutions of the UN Security council.”

She stressed that for France this is the only way forward. “Other formulas outside of these agreed parameters are unrealistic and would most probably lead to tension and division,” she added, noting that a two-state solution would only deprive Turkish Cypriots of the benefits from the EU membership.

She went on to say that in all the meetings that she has she always underlines the fact that neither party benefits from the status quo.  She also recalled that France welcomed the resumption of contacts with the informal tripartite dinner organized under the aegis of the UN Secretary-General last October. “And I think that it is very important now to support your efforts and we will do it in order to find a common ground with the Turkish Cypriots to settle the situation to the benefit of all Cypriots,” she stressed.

Asked about France’s position as regards the ongoing wars in Ukraine and Gaza and the developments in Syria, the French Ambassador said that France condemns in the strongest possible terms Russia’s indiscriminate strikes against Ukraine’s cities, civilians and energy infrastructure. This logic of escalation on the part of Russia is unacceptable: it violates the sovereign rights of Ukraine and the United Nations Charter, she added, stressing that France and its partners including Cyprus are determined to provide Ukraine with all the support it needs, over the long term, to defeat Russia.

No just and lasting peace can be achieved without the Ukrainians and the Europeans, she stressed, adding that this is a matter that concerns European security.

The Ambassador also said that the agreement on a ceasefire in Lebanon after months of joint efforts by France and the United States should pave the way for a ceasefire in Gaza. She stressed that the conflict in Gaza has confirmed, once again, Cyprus’ highly strategic position in the region. She thanked Cyprus for the facilities provided to the forces of France in order to prepare for an evacuation of its citizens. Furthermore, she commended the “Amalthea” initiative for a maritime corridor which allowed for the transfer of thousands of tons of humanitarian aid to Gaza as a complementary route to the ground deliveries. As she noted, France made a major contribution to this operation, providing a military support vessel for several weeks.

With regard to Syria, she said that the country is living through a historic moment since the fall of Assad’s regime. This change is the making of the Syrian people, who must now take their destiny into their own hands, she said. She noted that France supports an inclusive transition that respects all minorities and enables Syria to embark on the road to a lasting peace for the benefit of the entire region.

“At the same time, we are not naïve and we ignore nothing of the scale of the challenges ahead. I know that this is a major concern for Cyprus, a neighboring country. I want to assure the Cypriots that we stand at their side. France remains committed to the security of all in the Middle East,” she added, stressing that “all these conflicts here in the region really underline the fact that Cyprus is a key partner, it has a really strategic position in the region.”

Asked about the challenges the EU is currently facing, Chevrier Kolačko said that France believes it is a matter of priority to improve Europe’s strategic autonomy.

“This means strengthening our sovereignty and reducing our dependencies on other players like Russia or China, but also the US. It means that we do not want to be simply customers, to be a market that is taken, to delegate our economy, technological choices or security to others, but we want to fully grasp the issue of peace on our soil, of our prosperity and to defend our values and democratic model,” she said.

On migration she noted that it has put pressure on EU member states, in particular on Cyprus which has welcomed one of the largest proportions of asylum seekers within the EU. “We remain at the disposal of our Cypriot partners on this issue, particularly in the context of the transition in Syria,” she stressed.

Regarding climate change, she said that France advocates for an ambitious climate action from the EU in line with the urgency of the issue. “Our priorities concern the implementation of the European Green Deal, which aims for net-zero greenhouse gas emission by 2050, carbon pricing so as to reduce industrial emission, increasing renewable energy capacity and transitioning from fossil fuels,” she noted.

Moreover, she stressed the need for Europe to become a leader of digital transition, noting at the same time that “ensuring a balanced Artificial Intelligence use for all European citizens and beyond is also a priority for France.”

As she said, in February 2025, France will host the Artificial Intelligence Action Summit, gathering leaders, politicians, private sector figures, academics and non-governmental organizations to reflect on how we can build a world with a respectful, open and benefiting to all, use of AI.