RIYADH: Cyprus’s deputy tourism minister believes boosting ties with Saudi Arabia is a key part of helping his country diversify the travelers that visit his island. Speaking to Arab News during a three-day visit to the Kingdom, Kostas Koumis insisted both countries “belong in the same neighborhood and the people have a similar way of thinking.” The minister’s visit came as the two countries prepare to sign a memorandum of understanding to boost tourism flows in the wake of direct flights between the two countries commencing in March 2023.Cyprus is keen to revitalize its tourism industry after the devastating effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, with the island also seeing tourist numbers down thanks to the Ukrainian-Russian war. “I came here to meet the people of the industry, the travel agencies, the tour operators, in order to to present them our country and try to help them, and also their efforts to promote Cyprus from our side to get the chance to welcome more people of Saudi Arabia to Cyprus,” he said, adding: “I am here to boost the market.” Referring to the planned MoU, Koumis said: “It is about cooperation and tourists, and we believe that there are many reasons for the two countries to come closer.” He added: “There are many reasons to establish cooperation. I believe it is expected that the two industries — the tourist industry of Cyprus and the industry of Saudi Arabia — will come closer.” One of the main goals of his visit is to have the chance “to share ideas and to exchange information.” Cyprus might be a small country but it punches above its weight when it comes to tourism, which accounts for 20 percent of its gross domestic product. “We started receiving visitors in 1971 — Cyprus is considered as an established tourist destination for many years,” said the deputy minister. The main tourism market is central and northern Europe, including Scandinavian countries, and Russia and Ukraine. Koumis said: “The war in Ukraine halted the huge number of tourists coming from Russia and Ukraine to visit. “In 2019 we had 876,000 visitors from Russia and Ukraine. Together, we lost these visitors. “I know that it’s a gap which we’re trying to replace with visitors from maybe other countries.” One country that does see Cyprus as a key holiday destination is Israel, with visitors from the state making up the second-largest market in April this year, accounting for almost 10 percent of all travelers. Yet it is other countries in the region that Koumis is keen to appeal to, adding: “It’s the GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) countries we never had the chance to have high numbers.” The reason for that, he explained, was the historic lack of direct connections between GCC countries — something that has been remedied by Saudi Arabia. “Now’s the time to boost these efforts because we have direct flights from Saudi Arabia. It’s about time to boost these efforts to get more and more visitors,” Koumis said. The deputy minister met with Riyadh Air officials as part of his visit to Saudi Arabia and said: “The meeting went very well. We know the prospects of the plan. And of course, we are interested to see Riyadh Air execute flights towards Cyprus when they start.” There are currently direct flights to Cyprus from Riyadh, Jeddah and Dammam, and Koumis believes any growth in tourism will be reciprocal. In June, the deputy minister visited the UAE in a bid to drum up interest in Cyprus as a tourist destination. His visit came after just 21,000 travelers from the UAE visited the island in 2022, a figure Koumis described as “a steady number for the past few years.” He is hoping to increase this thanks to the opening of new routes between the two nations by Cyprus Airways in March. Commenting on the beauty of his country and why people should visit, the deputy minister said: “As a summer destination we have five different beaches which every year are awarded among the top beaches in the world. “This is one of the reasons why Cyprus established itself as a very, very famous summer destination. The color of the beach, the color of the water is considered among the best signatories of the Mediterranean Sea. “Also the temperature of the water is really very good, very welcoming.” Another selling point is one that Koumis believes has not been shared enough: the food. He said: “Although we never promote our gastronomy to become fashionable all over the world, the truth is that we receive every year many visitors coming back for the quality of the food in Cyprus. The deputy minister said his ministry plans to “promote the Cyprus gastronomy more,” adding: “We believe that it deserves it and it is something which probably we will discuss with the Ministry of Tourism of Saudi Arabia immediately after signing the MoU.”