Cyprus assumes EU presidency with Ukraine's Zelenskiy attending

Cyprus assumed the European Union’s rotating presidency on Wednesday, starting its term with a meeting attended by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Antonio Costa.

A ceremony later in Nicosia marking the start of its six-month term will include Middle Eastern leaders, including Lebanese President Joseph Aoun, highlighting the ambition of the east Mediterranean island to serve as a bridge between Europe and the region.

Zelenskiy was welcomed at the presidential palace by Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides. "We hope that during your presidency a lot of steps (can be taken) forward, closer to membership in the EU," Zelenskiy told Christodoulides in a brief chat before television cameras.

The meeting, he added, would provide an opportunity to discuss details of a meeting in Paris on Tuesday, where the United States backed a broad coalition of Ukraine's allies in vowing to provide security guarantees in the event of a ceasefire to support the country if Russia attacks again. 

Cyprus, which traditionally had close political and cultural ties with Russia, has fully backed sanctions on Moscow, with many on the island drawing paralells between Russia's invasion of Ukraine to Turkey's invasion of north Cyprus in 1974 after a brief coup engineered by the military then ruling Greece.

Zelenskiy's presence was seen as a political sign of continued EU backing for Kyiv as its war with Russia enters a fifth year.

Christodoulides said Cyprus’s presidency -- its second at the helm of the EU -- aims to boost EU autonomy and deepen integration in response to global challenges.