Embassy of Sweden in Nicosia

Mother's day is celebrated annually in Sweden on the last Sunday in May.

We'd like to extend our warmest congratulations to all mums around the world!

Credits: Simon Paulin/imagebank.sweden.se

The International Day of Peacekeepers is a day celebrated on 29 May to honor all those who participate or have participated in United Nations peacekeeping forces.

Sweden will on this day come together to honor its veterans – past, present and future. It is also a day dedicated to all the relatives who provide support and enable a loved one to make a significant contribution to the service of the nation.

A special mention to all the Swedish 🇸🇪 peacekeepers that have served in UNFICYP 🇺🇳. The Swedish UN force on Cyprus was Sweden’s largest ever peace-keeping mission. It lasted from 1964 to 1993. In all, Sweden provided 25 589 military personnel and 2 365 police officials to UNFICYP. During the mission, 17 Swedes lost their lives. Sweden also broke new ground by employing women in the UN mission for the first time.

Credits: Försvarsmakten

Yesterday, we celebrated the winners of the "Inspiring journey of Moomins and Pippi" children's literary project with a ceremony at the Swedish Residence. Winning students were awarded diplomas by the Minister of Education, Sport and Youth, Dr Athena Michaelidou, Ambassador of Sweden, Mr Martin Hagström, Ambassador of Finland, Mrs Päivi Peltokoski and the Commissioner for the Protection of Children's Rights, Ms Elena Perikleous. The winning schools also received literary corners, sponsored by IKEA as well as books about the adventures of Pippi Longstocking and the Moomins.📚⛺️

The children's literary project was organized under the auspices of the Minister during the Cyprus Presidency of the Council of the EU. Children from more than 30 primary schools all around Cyprus participated with fascinating artworks and creative stories reflecting the values of Moomins and Pippi. The contributions were carefully reviewed by a scientific committee, and the winners were chosen by the Ambassadors, CYBBY - Cyprus IBBY - Κυπριακός Σύνδεσμος Παιδικού Νεανικού Βιβλίου in cooperation wih Υπουργείο Παιδείας, Αθλητισμού και Νεολαίας the Cyprus Ministry of Education, Sport and Youth . 🎨🖌️

We want to send our heartfelt thank you to all the schools who participated and to all our partners who supported the project. Beloved characters Moomins and Pippi will continue to inspire us with their optimism and courage.

Last week our Intern, Hanna Andström, welcomed the embassy trainee community of EU member states in Nicosia, to a traditional Swedish Fika with Princess Cake. We are profoundly grateful to our guest speaker Carl Westerberg from the European Commission’s Office in Nicosia for sharing different paths into a career in the European Union. Thank you for sharing your precious expertise!

We send our best wishes to all the trainees who participated from Portugal 🇵🇹, Austria 🇦🇹, Italy 🇮🇹, France 🇫🇷, Finland 🇫🇮, and the Netherlands 🇳🇱, and wish them all the best of luck in their future endeavors!

17 May is International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia – or IDAHOBIT. 🏳️‍🌈

It's a day is to raise awareness of the violence and discrimination still faced by le***an, gay, bisexual, transgender, q***r and other people with diverse sexual and gender identities around the world. Everyone deserves the right to be themselves and to feel safe. ❤️🧡💛💚💙💜

IDAHOBIT commemorates the decision by the World Health Organization to remove homosexuality from its International Classification of Diseases on on 17 May 1990.



Photo credit: Emmie Bolmstedt

TOMORROW! 🤩
🎬 Two countries, two stories, one powerful night at FFD26 !
On 11 May, travel from Algeria to Northern Sweden through two unique films :
🎥 “Fanon” – A psychiatrist in revolutionary Algeria, navigating violence, identity and freedom
🎥 “Historjá – Stygn för Sápmi” – The story of the Sámi people and their struggle for justice and recognition
📍 11 May, 18:30
📍 The Cyprus Institute, Nicosia
🎟 Free entrance (with reservation)
here : https://forms.office.com/e/b3KGxCGQJ0
🤝 Co-organised by : Embassy of France & French Institute | Embassy of Sweden

Happy Europe Day! 🇪🇺 🇪🇺 🇪🇺

Today we mark the signing of the 'Schuman Declaration' on 9 May 1950. The history of the European Union began with the Schuman declaration, a plan aiming to secure long-term peace in post-war Europe.

In January 1995, Sweden – along with Finland and Austria – became a member of the EU. Over three decades later, the impact of that decision continues to shape our country.

Here are 5 notable ways that the EU membership has made a difference:

🎓 More than 105,000 Swedes have studied across the EU thanks to Erasmus+, the EU's programme to support education, training, youth and sport in Europe.

🚆 Co-operation in the Schengen Area – which comprises 25 EU Member States and four non-EU countries – has boosted trade and tourism.

💼 Free movement on the labour market has made it easier for Swedish companies to recruit workers from other EU member countries.

🏞️ The common EU legislation has helped reduce air pollution in Sweden through regulations on fuel quality, vehicle standards, and environmental laws both for industries and the energy sector.

💶 Global trade is vital to Sweden, and the EU has ensured access to an increasing number of free trade agreements with countries around the world.

Sweden has kept its own currency, the Swedish Krona (SEK). Swedish is one of the EU’s 24 official languages.

Photo: Lieselotte van der Meijs/imagebank.sweden.se