Nicosia, Cyprus. Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhurman met outgoing United States ambassador in Nicosia Julie Davis on Tuesday, following her resignation from the US state department last month. Erhurman’s office said the two discussed recent developments.
Meeting in Nicosia
Erhurman’s office announced that the pair had “discussed recent developments”.
Resignation and Ukraine posting
Davis had been appointed as the US’ charge d’affaires in Ukraine last year, but resigned after less than a year in the job amid reports of differences of opinion with US President Donald Trump.
The Financial Times and other outlets reported that Davis had become “frustrated” with her role, with Trump’s support for Ukraine openly less steadfast than that of his predecessor Joe Biden.
Those reports were denied by the US’ state department, with its spokesman Tommy Piggot saying that Davis “has been a steadfast proponent of the Trump administration’s efforts to bring about a durable peace between Russia and Ukraine”.
Davis had taken up her role in May last year, succeeding Bridget Brink, who had herself reportedly chosen to resign in part out of opposition to Trump’s stance on the war.
Cyprus role and succession
At the time, government spokesman Konstantinos Letymbiotis had praised Davis’ work on the island, saying that relations between Cyprus and the US were “perhaps at their closest, their highest level since the founding of the Republic of Cyprus”.
In her absence, Trump nominated John Breslow to the Nicosia post, though his nomination has not been voted upon by the Senate.
Davis had served on the island since February 2023 and remained officially in post in Nicosia even after her appointment in Kyiv, appearing at the embassy’s July 4 celebrations last year and alongside President Nikos Christodoulides at football matches.
What do you think the meeting between Erhurman and Davis indicates about current US-Cyprus relations?