Health diplomacy as a means of promoting peace and cooperation in the Eastern Mediterranean, alongside the demographic challenges facing Cyprus and Greece, were the main topics of a conference held at European University Cyprus as part of Hippocratic Week – Hippocratic School 2026.
Addressing the conference, ‘Challenges of the Era’, Health Minister Neophytos Charalambides, representing President Nikos Christodoulides, said protecting public health was a national responsibility that required increasing international cooperation.
He said countries’ preparedness for health crises, access to scientific knowledge and the adequacy of health services depended partly on their ability to work together. Timely information-sharing, joint research, training of healthcare professionals and coordinated emergency preparedness could strengthen security and improve the use of scientific knowledge.
For Cyprus, as an EU member state in the Eastern Mediterranean, European and international mechanisms, together with university partnerships, offered opportunities to build closer ties with countries in the region.
Charalambides said health could provide common ground even where political differences existed, helping build trust and maintain the protection of human life as a shared priority, although health cooperation alone could not resolve conflicts.
He also highlighted the implications of population ageing and declining birth rates for health services. He said longer life expectancy should be accompanied by good health and independence, stressing the need to connect prevention, chronic disease management, rehabilitation and long-term care.
Support for families, reproductive health services and maternal and child care should also be linked to broader policies on housing, employment and childcare, he said. Demographic changes also required long-term planning for healthcare staffing, training and the retention of professionals.
Demographic challenges
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In an address by Archbishop of Cyprus Georgios, read on his behalf by Michalis Spyrou, the Head of the Church of Cyprus linked the island’s low birth rate to the 1974 Turkish invasion and continuing occupation.
‘The failure to at least replace the population poses enormous dangers,’ he said, warning that Greek Cypriots could become a minority in their homeland. He called for greater support for families, particularly those with many children, and incentives to encourage young people to start families. He also referred to the Church of Cyprus’ support programme for families with three or more children.
Nicosia Mayor Charalambos Prountzos proposed greater medical cooperation between Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots, including better use of medical infrastructure and improved access to specialist services.
He said Cyprus’ population had increased by 30.4% over the past 20 years, with migration accounting for almost all the growth amid negative natural population change. This had placed pressure on health infrastructure and staffing, while increasing the need for communication across different cultural backgrounds.
Prountzos added that a life expectancy of around 84 years should be accompanied by dignified living conditions, appropriate care and physical and psychological wellbeing in old age.
George Patoulis, president of the Athens Medical Association and the World Hippocratic Institute of Physicians, described the demographic issue as a national and European challenge requiring cooperation between Cyprus and Greece. He also pointed out the countries’ longstanding medical ties and said Hippocratic Week honoured medical students and graduates from 40 universities internationally.
Petros Agathangelou, president of the Cyprus Medical Association, stressed that international cooperation was essential to protecting human life, including amid conflict and mistrust. In the Eastern Mediterranean, he said, scientific collaboration should be guided by medical ethics and patients’ needs. He also called for evidence-based demographic policies that support family life while respecting reproductive autonomy.
Konstantinos Pantos, vice-president of the World Hippocratic Institute of Physicians, called for fertility education to become part of preventive medicine. He said social and economic factors had delayed family formation, while biological constraints remained, adding that assisted reproduction could not overcome all age-related limitations. He highlighted the importance of early diagnosis, fertility preservation and addressing male as well as female fertility, without placing pressure on individuals.
International cooperation in healthcare
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Khassim Diagne, the UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative in Cyprus and head of UNFICYP, said health could bring people and countries together, creating opportunities for dialogue, trust and collective action. He stressed the UN’s role in promoting solidarity, cooperation and equal access to healthcare.
Elizabeth Johnson, senior strategic adviser for medical, health and life sciences at European University Cyprus, announced that the university and Cyprus would host the international conference ‘All Together for Better Health’ in Nicosia in 2027. The event will focus on interprofessional education and collaboration among healthcare professionals.
Stefanos Geroulanos, vice-president of the International Hippocratic Foundation in Kos, highlighted medicine’s dual role as a scientific profession and a humanitarian vocation grounded in ethics, responsibility and respect for human life. He said the foundation’s Hippocratic Botanical Garden contained 240 plants mentioned in the Hippocratic Collection and used in ancient Greek medicine.
Hippocratic Week will conclude in Kos with a ceremony of the Hippocratic Oath at the ancient Asclepieion.