Cyprus: Cyprus’s former Foreign Minister Nikos Christodoulides has been elected as the new president of the small European Union member state.

Mr. Christodoulides, 49, defeated Mr. Andreas Mavroyiannis, a fellow diplomat, with 51.9 percent of the vote, compared to 48.1 percent in the presidential election.

“Tonight, a long but beautiful journey has come to an end. It gave me the opportunity to meet thousands of people and hear their hopes and dreams for our country, Mr. Mavroyiannis, a former chief negotiator in peace talks with Turkish Cypriots, shared conceding defeat.

The former Foreign Minister won with a majority of 15,041 votes over his opponent.

Mr. Christodoulides was expelled from the ruling Democratic Rally (DISY) party after announcing his candidacy, and he ran as an independent. In the first round of voting, the the former DISY member was in the lead with 32.04 percent of the vote.

The upcoming president was appointed government spokesman in 2014 and foreign minister in 2018. Mr. Christodoulides has the support of the Democratic Party, the Movement for Social Democracy, and the Democratic Alignment.

Opponents have accused the newly elected President of contributing to the deadlock over resolving the status of the breakaway Turkish Cypriot north during his term as foreign minister.

“The Cypriot people know and understand what is at stake. I have complete confidence in their judgment. What is important is unity,” Mr. Christodoulides commented earlier after casting his vote.

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