High Commissioner of Cyprus meets the King

Mosa Maoeng
Maseru – The High Commissioner of the Republic of Cyprus, His Excellency Antonis Mandritis, is in the country on a courtesy visit on the Head of State of the Kingdom of Lesotho, His Majesty King Letsie III. High Commissioner Mandritis, who is based in Pretoria, South Africa, represents the small Republic of Cyprus of about 1.2 million people in eleven Southern African countries including Lesotho, South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, eSwatini, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Mauritius, Madagascar and Malawi. Like Lesotho, Cyprus is a former British colony and a member of the Commonwealth. It has a long history in modern Western civilization dating back to the peak of both the Greek and Roman empires.
It became independent from British rule in 1960 and joined the European Union in 2004. In 1974, Turkey invaded the Republic of Cyprus with massive military force in violation of the UN charter and the fundamental principles of international law. The pretext was a military coup against the elected president of Cyprus instigated by the military junta ruling Greece at the time. Turkey seized 36.2 % of the territory of the sovereign Republic of Cyprus, forcibly dividing the country along ethnic lines. Among areas of potential co-operation with Lesotho, High Commissioner Mandritis cited untapped potential in tourism, particularly agro-tourism where Cyprus has a lot of experience and Lesotho could immensely benefit.