This article covers the diplomatic relationship between India and the Republic of Cyprus (RoC): the establishment of relations, the positions each side takes on international issues, high-level visits and the dialogue mechanisms between the two governments. It is based on the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) bilateral brief of May 2026, and describes the position as of that date.

Establishment and foundations

India and RoC established diplomatic relations on 10 February 1962. According to the MEA brief of May 2026, the two countries enjoy excellent bilateral relations based on friendship, mutual respect and close cooperation, and have collaborated in the United Nations, the Commonwealth and other international fora.

The brief credits the foundation of the relationship to the first President of RoC, Archbishop Makarios, and the first Prime Minister of India, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru. It names both among the pioneers of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), and records that President Archbishop Makarios deeply appreciated the support India gave to the Cypriot struggle against British colonialism.

Positions on international issues

India has consistently endorsed a solution to the Cyprus Issue based on UNSC resolutions and international law. It supports a bi-zonal bi-communal federation based on UN Resolutions as a solution to the Cyprus question.

RoC supports India's candidature in various international fora, including India's candidature as a permanent member of an expanded United Nations Security Council (UNSC). It extended its full support for the India-US Civil Nuclear Agreement within the Nuclear Supplier Group (NSG) and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). RoC has also conveyed its support for India's candidature for a non-permanent seat in the UN Security Council for the term 2028-29.

Within the European Union, the brief describes Cyprus as a keen supporter of India that has contributed actively to India-EU relations within the framework of the India-EU strategic partnership. It adds that Cyprus commends India's participation in UN peacekeeping operations, of which it has been one of the beneficiaries.

Presidential visits

President of India Shri Ram Nath Kovind visited Cyprus in September 2018, and President of Cyprus Nicos Anastasiades visited India in April 2017. The brief states that, at the invitation of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, President Nikos Christodoulides will undertake a State visit to India, including Mumbai and Delhi, from 20-23 May 2026. The State Visit took place from 20-23 May 2026, and during it the two leaders agreed to elevate the bilateral Comprehensive Partnership to a Strategic Partnership.

Prime Minister's visit of June 2025

Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid an official visit to RoC from 15-16 June 2025. The brief calls it a historic milestone, as the first such visit in over two decades. The previous Prime Ministerial visit to RoC took place on 7-8 October 2002, when Prime Minister Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee visited.

President Nikos Christodoulides received Prime Minister Modi at the airport. On 16 June 2025 the two leaders held a tete-a-tete meeting followed by delegation-level talks, and discussed a wide range of bilateral, regional and global issues. According to the brief, they committed to strengthening cooperation in security, defence, trade, technology and people-to-people ties, with a focus on tackling terrorism, enhancing connectivity and advancing economic collaboration.

The leaders agreed to work towards a comprehensive Joint Action Plan to guide bilateral relations for the next five years, 2025-29, and a Joint Declaration was issued on 16 June 2025. President Christodoulides conferred on Prime Minister Modi RoC's highest civilian honour, the "Grand Cross of the Order of Makarios III". Agreements signed on the sidelines of the visit concerned an academic chair, capital markets and cross-border payments.

Earlier, Prime Minister Modi met President Nicos Anastasiades at CHOGM in London on 20 April 2018 and on the sidelines of UNGA in New York on 26 September 2019.

Foreign Minister level

External Affairs Minister (EAM) Dr. S. Jaishankar paid an official visit to RoC from 29-31 December 2022. He visited again on 27-28 May 2026 as a special invitee to the informal meeting of EU Foreign Ministers (Gymnich), and called on President Nikos Christodoulides in Nicosia. He met the Acting President and President of the House of Representatives (Speaker), Ms. Annita Demetriou, and the Foreign Minister of RoC, Ioannis Kasoulides. An MoU on Defence and Military Cooperation and a Declaration of Intent on the Migration and Mobility Partnership Agreement (MMPA) were signed during the visit, and RoC joined the International Solar Alliance.

Foreign Minister Dr. Constantinos Kombos visited India from 29-31 October 2025, after a gap of 14 years, the last visit by a Cypriot Foreign Minister having taken place in 2011. He held a one-on-one meeting with EAM, followed by delegation-level talks on 30 October 2025. The two ministers reviewed progress on the commitments of the Joint Declaration of June 2025 and reviewed the Joint Action Plan 2025-2029. FM Kombos also participated in the 75th Sapru House Lecture and delivered a keynote address titled "Cyprus and the World" at the Indian Council of World Affairs.

The brief lists the following other meetings and calls between EAM and FM Kombos:

  • 13 May 2023: meeting on the sidelines of the EU-Indo Pacific Forum in Stockholm
  • 23 September 2023 and 25 September 2024: meetings on the sidelines of the 78th and 79th UNGA in New York
  • 07 December 2024: meeting during the Doha Forum in Doha
  • 29 April 2025: telephone call after the Pahalgam terror attack, in which FM Kombos condemned the attack and expressed solidarity with India
  • 30 May 2025: telephone call on ways to enhance cooperation and on advancing EU-India relations, in light of Cyprus' upcoming Presidency of the EU Council
  • June 2025: FM Kombos welcomed EAM at the airport during the Prime Minister's visit and the two held discussions
  • 24 September 2025: meeting at the 80th UNGA High-Level Week in New York, reviewing progress since the Prime Minister's visit; EAM reaffirmed support for a comprehensive and lasting settlement of the Cyprus Question in accordance with the agreed UN framework and the relevant UNSC resolutions
  • 4 February 2026: brief meeting at the Critical Minerals Ministerial in Washington DC, where FM Kombos congratulated EAM on recent trade agreements with the US and the EU, calling them a sign of "effective diplomacy"
  • 3 March 2026: telephone call exchanging views on the situation in the Gulf region
  • 15 March 2026: meeting at the Foreign Affairs Council of the EU in Brussels on bilateral matters, regional developments in the Middle East and the India-EU strategic partnership

Earlier, EAM held a virtual meeting with the then Minister of Foreign Affairs, Nikos Christodoulides, on 16 February 2021. He met the then Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ioannis Kasoulides, at CHOGM 2022 in Kigali, Rwanda on 23 June 2022 and at the 77th UNGA in New York on 24 September 2022.

Parliamentary exchanges

A parliamentary delegation led by the President of the House of Representatives, Ms. Annita Demetriou, visited New Delhi from 24-28 November 2025 at the invitation of the Speaker of Lok Sabha, Shri Om Birla. The brief notes that the visit took place after a gap of 30 years at this level. The delegation comprised MP Nikos Tornaritis (DISY), MP Aristos Damianou (AKEL), MP Christiana Erotokritou (DIKO) and senior officials of the House of Representatives.

President Demetriou met Rashtrapatiji Smt. Droupadi Murmu, Vice President and Rajya Sabha Chairman Shri C. P. Radhakrishnan, Lok Sabha Speaker Shri Om Birla and EAM Dr. S. Jaishankar. She also met Shri Shashi Tharoor, MP and Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of Lok Sabha. The delegation toured both houses of Parliament, and Ms. Demetriou gave an interview to DD News.

Foreign Office Consultations

In March 2001 the two sides signed a protocol institutionalising Foreign Office Consultations (FOC) on an annual basis, at the level of Secretary, held alternately in Nicosia and New Delhi. As of May 2026, six rounds had taken place.

The last round was held on 26 November 2024 in Nicosia. The Indian side was led by Shri Arun Kumar Sahu, Additional Secretary (Central Europe), and the Cypriot side by Ms. Thessalia Salina Shambos, Political Director, MoFA.