Canada will do everything to support the ongoing process to reach a viable Cyprus solution, Canadian Veterans Affairs Minister Julian Fantino said on Monday.

Speaking after a meeting with Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades, Fantino, accompanied by ten veteran soldiers and the country’s High Commissioner to Cyprus, expressed admiration for the President’s vision and said they discussed his efforts to create a lasting solution.

“We want to encourage him – and I did actually on behalf of Canada – to continue along that path” Fantino said, adding that “this is the only way to go”.

He added that Canada will do everything to support these efforts. “I am very pleased to see how committed he [the Preisdent] is to this lasting solution that we are all very hopeful it will eventually happen” he said.

The Canadian Minister said, moreover, that they discussed economic prospects, including tourism, that may create win-win situations for Cyprus and Canada, as well as about the importance of Cyprus in the context of the agreement between Canada and the EU.

The Minister who is on the island, on the occasion of the 50th anniversary since the establishment of UNFICYP, the UN’s peace keeping force, referred to Canada’s involvement, saying that over 25,000 Canadian soldiers have served on the island, in the course of the years, while 28 Canadian soldiers have lost their lives.