On 11th April, a meeting took place in Nea Paphos, Cyprus, attended by the ambassadors of Poland, Austria, the Czech Republic, Spain, and the Netherlands, and archaeologists from the University of Warsaw. The event was part of the activities related to the Polish presidency of the Council of the European Union. The official opening of the University of Warsaw’s research station in Cyprus will take place in June.
The meeting of ambassadors of EU member states serving in Cyprus with Polish archaeologists conducting excavations on the island was part of activities related to Poland’s presidency of the Council of the European Union. It took place on 11th April in the ancient city of Nea Paphos, where researchers from the University of Warsaw are carrying out archaeological excavations.
The event was attended by Marek Szczepanowski, Ambassador of the Republic of Poland, along with ambassadors Susanne Bachfischer (the Republic of Austria), Gabriel Ferrán Carrión (the Kingdom of Spain), Vladimír Němec (the Czech Republic), and Willem Wouter Plomp (the Kingdom of the Netherlands).
Polish archaeological research in Cyprus was presented by researchers from the University of Warsaw’s Polish Centre of Mediterranean Archaeology (PCMA UW): Prof. Ewdoksia Papuci-Władyka, head of the PCMA UW research station in Cyprus, and dr. Paweł Lech.
The meeting was also attended by Phedonas Phedonos, the mayor of Paphos, and Eustathios Raptou, a representative of the Department of Antiquities of Cyprus.
The visit aimed to showcase the achievements of Polish science and strengthen partnerships between EU member states in the context of shared cultural heritage and scientific cooperation. Cyprus is one of the two countries that will assume the presidency of the Council of the European Union following Poland as part of the so-called presidency trio. Denmark’s presidency will begin in July 2025, followed by Cyprus in January 2026.
The University of Warsaw in Cyprus
The expedition of the Polish Centre of Mediterranean Archaeology of the University of Warsaw has been working at the archaeological site in Nea Paphos since 1965. In 2025, the 60th anniversary of the start of archaeological research at the site is being celebrated. On this occasion, a series of academic and outreach events will take place, including an international conference dedicated to Nea Paphos and an exhibition presenting the history of the research. In June, the official opening of the PCMA UW research station in Paphos, established in 2021, is planned.
