Five new ministers joined Cyprus’ government on Wednesday after President Nikos Christodoulides announced a part-reshuffle of his cabinet two days ago.
The changes involved the leadership of ministries of defense, health, justice and agriculture, and the deputy minister of innovation, research and digital policy ministry.
In addition to the five new ministries, President Christodoulides also named a new deputy minister of European affairs, in charge of preparations for Cyprus’ six-month presidency of the European Union starting in January 2026.
The reshuffle came after the president said in a newspaper interview on Dec. 31 that he was considering changes to the cabinet.
In a speech during the televised confirmation ceremony for the new ministers, Christodoulides said that they would “receive a mandate to speed up the terms of the human-centered pre-election program in all sectors.”
Political analysts said the replacement of the defense minister was a surprise since he had not been linked to any controversy during his 10 months in office.
However, the previous justice minister had been publicly criticized by Christodoulides following riots and clashes between asylum seekers and the police last year, and the former health minister was involved in a public dispute on social media with the permanent secretary of the ministry.
Meanwhile, the ex-agriculture minister was held responsible for a bungled contract for roadworks in an ecologically sensitive national park. ■
