The High Commissioner of the Republic of Cyprus to Australia, Antonis Sammoutis, speaks to Economy Today about the role of the Cypriot community in strengthening bilateral relations, prospects for economic cooperation, investment opportunities and the potential to further deepen ties between Nicosia and Canberra.
Interview by Polina Aniftou
Cyprus and Australia have been connected for decades through a strong and active Cypriot community, which continues to play a decisive role in relations between the two countries. However, as the High Commissioner of the Republic of Cyprus to Australia, Antonis Sammoutis, points out, the prospects for bilateral cooperation now extend far beyond the traditional ties of the diaspora.
From investment, trade and tourism to education, innovation and new business partnerships, Cyprus and Australia have considerable room to further develop their relationship. In an interview with Economy Today, Sammoutis discusses the emerging opportunities, the role Cyprus could play as a European base for Australian businesses, and the contribution of the Cypriot diaspora to maintaining and strengthening this multidimensional relationship.
Bilateral relations and political cooperation
How would you describe Cyprus–Australia relations today? Are they still primarily historical and diaspora-based, or have they now acquired more substantial political and economic dimensions?
Certainly, the historical foundations of our bilateral relations and the role of our community as a bridge are of great importance. However, in today’s world, Cyprus’ status as a member state of the European Union and the synergies that are constantly being created provide us with new opportunities for cooperation. These include the Free Trade Agreement, which is expected to be concluded soon, Australia’s accession to the Horizon Europe programme as early as next year, the Security and Defence Partnership, and the agreement on critical minerals.
As a diplomatic mission, we encourage young people to take advantage of student exchange programmes as well as the working holiday programme, so that they can experience this beautiful country and explore the opportunities it offers.
The Cypriot community in Australia is one of the most important communities of the diaspora. What role does it play today in strengthening relations between the two countries?
Indeed, our community is at the forefront. Many Australians of Cypriot descent have risen to high office, distinguished themselves in all areas of life and, of course, many have also achieved considerable economic success. This decade, its organised associations are marking a century of presence on the fifth continent.
Partly because of the diaspora, Australia continues to take an active interest in our political issue. The community supports our exports to Australia and often imports into Cyprus, is active in the services market and strengthens Cyprus in the fields of investment and tourism.
Australia’s successful model of peaceful coexistence among so many different peoples, including Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots, can also serve as an inspiration for our own society.
How active does the Cypriot identity remain among second- and third-generation Cypriots in Australia? Are you seeing a distancing from Cyprus or new forms of connection?
The second, third and now the beginning of the fourth generation of our diaspora seek to maintain their connection with Cyprus and preserve their identity in every possible way, through the Church, our language and our culture.
They have many opportunities, also through diaspora organisations, to participate in a variety of activities. Dance groups and sports remain particularly popular among young people.
They frequently travel to Cyprus, but even when they do not, they use the internet to develop and expand their knowledge of their ancestors’ country of origin and find new ways of strengthening these ties, including through Cypriot cuisine, music and songs.
At a political level, how does Australia support the Republic of Cyprus and its positions on the Cyprus issue? Is there still substantial interest in the issue?
Since the 1950s, entire generations of Australian politicians from across the political spectrum have played an active role in the Cyprus issue. Australia’s participation in the UN peacekeeping force from 1964 until 2017 also contributed to this.
The current Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese, could be considered the latest example, having headed the Cyprus friendship group in the Federal Parliament for many years.
I believe that this interest will continue, and Australia, as a country with an increasingly important role in international affairs and a special relationship with Turkey, can raise our issue with its interlocutors while always presenting it on its proper basis. It has a good opportunity to do so this year, particularly because of its cooperation with Turkey in co-hosting COP31.
Australia has a strong presence in the Indo-Pacific, while Cyprus is located in the Eastern Mediterranean. Is there scope for cooperation on security, international law and regional stability?
Australia and Cyprus, also because of our status as an EU member and the common foreign policy of its member states, are considered like-minded countries.
Furthermore, Australia has a long tradition of promoting and respecting international law, dating back to the early days of the United Nations.
Cyprus is now also one of only two EU member states, together with Malta, that also belong to the Commonwealth alongside Indo-Pacific countries and Australia.
Australia, meanwhile, has never ceased to take an interest in the Eastern Mediterranean, partly because of its large Lebanese community and its relationship with Israel. Therefore, despite the considerable geographical distance separating us, the two countries meet and cooperate at multiple levels.
Economy, investment and business opportunities
Which economic sectors offer the greatest potential for strengthening Cyprus–Australia cooperation?
The services sector remains the largest. However, cooperation in the primary sector and Cypriot exports of dairy and other products can also have stable prospects.
There is also potential for Cypriot pharmaceutical exports. Australia, meanwhile, has significant prospects in the secondary sector, particularly in exports of industrial and high-technology products.
Do you see opportunities for cooperation in shipping, financial services, technology, education or the green transition?
Cyprus’ financial sector has, as is well known, undergone a correction following the 2013 financial crisis, largely overcoming the distortions of the past that also led to its withdrawal from the Australian market. I believe that in the future it could return in one form or another.
Shipping remains a strong sector in Cyprus and can always attract interest from Australia.
As for technology, education and the green transition, I see enormous opportunities for cooperation. These sectors are highly developed in Australia but are also constantly developing in Cyprus.
Particularly in the green transition, Australia has made significant progress, also in light of its co-hosting of COP31 with Turkey, and there is much we can learn from the country.
I consider last year’s visit to Australia by the Chief Scientist of the Republic of Cyprus, Demetris Skourides, to have been particularly important. The visit included a number of universities and major research centres and placed innovation in these fields at the heart of discussions.
I believe this visit contributed significantly to strengthening our bilateral cooperation and laid the foundations for even greater interaction in the future.
How can Cyprus become more attractive for serious, long-term investment from countries such as Australia?
I believe that in recent years our country has made significant progress in transparency, digitalisation and economic stability, often within a challenging international environment.
I believe Cyprus will become even more attractive to Australian investors if it further highlights its advantages as a gateway to Europe and the Middle East, because of both its EU membership and geographical location, as well as its infrastructure and the significant professional services it can provide at a relatively low cost.
Education, culture and diaspora
Education is an area in which Australia has considerable international strength. Are there opportunities for cooperation between Cypriot and Australian universities, research centres or student programmes?
Indeed, a small but significant number of Cypriots have studied in Australia and acquired the necessary skills to subsequently distinguish themselves.
Australia’s forthcoming participation in the Horizon Europe programme creates new opportunities in this field for cooperation between our universities and research centres. At the same time, the country remains a partner in the Erasmus exchange programme.
Research and education are developing rapidly in Cyprus, and we now encourage Australians, regardless of their background, to consider studying at our universities, which offer scholarships and often reduced tuition fees.
How can cultural diplomacy further strengthen Cyprus–Australia relations beyond preserving the memory and identity of the diaspora?
In cultural diplomacy, we encourage two-way initiatives in the visual arts and other fields. We welcome the promotion of Australian First Nations art in Cyprus, as has happened in other countries, and we believe in exchanges across all other areas, perhaps with particular emphasis on music.
This year, we hosted the highly regarded Cypriot wind ensemble “Krama” in Australia. We would like to see these cultural exchanges institutionalised and people working in culture travelling more frequently between the two countries.
The diaspora has considerable financial capacity and could help promote these initiatives. However, the state itself should also invest more in culture.
One field in which we have completed 90 years of cooperation is archaeology. While this will continue to be an area of cooperation, we expect it to be complemented by other fields, perhaps through initiatives by intellectuals and universities in Cyprus.
How is the High Commission addressing the challenge of connecting the younger generation of Cypriots in Australia with the language, history and culture of Cyprus?
As a diplomatic mission, we have prioritised the use of modern technology to help young people of Cypriot descent learn our language, as well as supporting their participation in intensive in-person programmes organised in Cyprus.
There are already tangible results. The Open University of Cyprus now offers the opportunity to learn the language remotely, and we hope that resources will be found in the future to provide scholarships enabling young people to complement these courses with intensive summer programmes in Cyprus.
Similar programmes are also being promoted in history and culture.
The involvement of our communities in this process is extremely important. All our communities have the necessary facilities to host events related to our history and culture.
Our country also periodically encourages and supports the publication of relevant books, and we are pleased to see that a number of academics of Cypriot and Greek origin in Australia have produced significant work in this field.
At a time of geopolitical realignment, how can a small country such as Cyprus make more strategic use of its diaspora?
It is no secret that the Cypriot diaspora in Australia, Canada, Britain and the United States has considerable financial capacity.
To encourage them to invest in our country, they must be convinced that the days of preferential treatment and lack of transparency are definitively behind us.
At the same time, we must highlight the significant opportunities available in real estate, tourism, energy, education and other sectors. Our expatriates could be followed by other investors who have not previously had ties with Cyprus.
It is also well known that, through the Minds in Cyprus programme, we would like to see a number of young people from the diaspora return to the country.
At the same time, we would like to see more people of Cypriot origin participating in the political life of the countries where they live. We believe that they have established themselves as communities, cooperate with other communities and, of course, with the wider Greek diaspora.
This is also supported by initiatives developed by Cyprus within the framework of trilateral cooperation with countries in our region.
Here in Australia, as a Cypriot diaspora, we can highlight to other ethnic communities the advantage of our participation in the European project, which directly connects us with communities from other European countries, as well as our country’s traditionally friendly relations with India and China, which also have large communities in Australia.
What image does Australia have of Cyprus today? Is Cyprus viewed mainly through the Cyprus issue and the diaspora, or as a modern European state with investment and geopolitical potential?
I believe both are true.
Cyprus’ improved connectivity with Australia, thanks to direct flights now available from countries in the Arabian Gulf, gives our Australian friends the opportunity to visit and see for themselves the progress made in our country, its modern infrastructure, the amenities offered by our hotels and, more generally, the beauty of Cyprus.
I have met several people here in Australia who visited Cyprus despite having no Cypriot background, and they spoke enthusiastically to me about their holidays. Our seas are certainly warmer and safer.
The Cyprus issue remains an enduring matter, as Australians also see Cyprus through the eyes of their Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot friends, many of whom came here to begin a new life in safety, away from violence.
I have already referred above to the investment opportunities and geopolitical importance of our country.
If you had to identify three priorities for the next phase of Cyprus–Australia relations, what would they be?
- Exchanges of visits at the highest level, with the Australian Prime Minister visiting Cyprus and the President of the Republic visiting Australia.
- The conclusion of a bilateral Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement.
- Attracting major investments in Cyprus from Australian superannuation funds.
What message would you like to send to Cypriots in Australia and Cypriots in Cyprus about the future of this relationship?
Cyprus and Australia are similar in many ways, which has led me in the past to describe our country as potentially a “small Australia.”
It is not only our shared past within the British Commonwealth, our common legal system or the similarities in our administrative systems. Nor is it simply the fact that we are sunny islands, have similar climates, or that eucalyptus and acacia trees often dominate our landscapes.
More importantly, we are open societies, and this allows us not only to welcome millions of visitors but also, to a great extent, to integrate those who choose to live permanently in our countries.
Australians of Cypriot descent recognise the successful migration model of their new homeland and hold Australia’s principles and values in high regard precisely because they recognise their connection with our own values: kindness, solidarity, tolerance, social equality, education and progress.
These are precisely the shared values that I call on everyone to preserve.
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