VZCZCXRO9083
RR RUEHAG RUEHAST RUEHDA RUEHDBU RUEHDF RUEHFL RUEHIK RUEHKW RUEHLA
RUEHLN RUEHLZ RUEHPOD RUEHROV RUEHSR RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHNC #0691/01 2361040
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 241040Z AUG 07
FM AMEMBASSY NICOSIA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 8101
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE
RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 NICOSIA 000691 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR EUR/SE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: OFDP PGOV PREL CY
SUBJECT: THE CYPRIOT PATH FROM JUNIOR OFFICER TO AMBASSADOR 
 
REF: NICOSIA 340 
 
¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY.  The Cypriot Foreign Ministry is a 
relatively small institution, accepting a dozen new 
professionals per year; most are among Cyprus's best and 
brightest.  New diplomats enter the corps through a hiring 
process lasting seven months.  Once on board, an A100-like 
(but shorter) orientation follows, after which junior 
officers receive their portfolios and begin work.  Lacking 
significant administrative and HR support, formal 
opportunities for training are scant, making career 
development highly dependent on personal initiative. 
Nonetheless, attrition is low, a product of mostly-excellent 
working conditions and a generous promotion ladder.  The 
Ministry's Number 2 exercises near total control over the 
hiring and assignments process, giving him/her great ability 
to influence policy long after departing the service.  End 
summary. 
 
------------------------------- 
A SMALL MFA FOR A SMALL COUNTRY 
------------------------------- 
 
¶2. (SBU) The MFA's size befits a country with just a 
half-century of independence and fewer than one million 
residents; both in square footage and workforce size its 
headquarters nearly mirrors U.S. Embassy Nicosia.  Overseas, 
the Ministry maintains 35 bilateral embassies (high 
commissions in Commonwealth states) and nine multilateral 
permanent missions.  The MFA's Permanent Secretary 
(D-equivalent) is charged with all diplomatic hiring 
decisions.  The MFA recruits adult applicants from all walks 
of Greek Cypriot life, although anecdotally, most new hires 
are upper-class twentysomethings with graduate degrees, most 
having studied in the UK or United States.  With the growth 
in higher education on the island, the MFA initiated its 
first internship program for Cyprus-based university students 
in August 2006. 
 
------------------------------------ 
ENTRY PROCEDURES AND MFA ORIENTATION 
------------------------------------ 
 
¶3.  (SBU) Many diplomats have family members who also work in 
the MFA, but entry is ostensibly merit-based.  The hiring 
process lasts approximately seven months and begins with 
announced vacancies that usually appear yearly on the MFA's 
website.  Typically, about 10 to 15 openings become available 
annually.  At a minimum, applicants must hold a bachelor's 
degree and be fluent in Greek and English.  After submitting 
their on-line application, candidates take a two-day 
examination comprising five modules:  general knowledge, 
Cypriot history, Greek language, English language, and 
knowledge of EU institutions.  Successful candidates proceed 
to interviews with a consultative committee of the MFA.  The 
committee, composed of the Permanent Secretary and the 
Ministry's four most senior diplomats, ranks the candidates 
and nominates up to four individuals per vacancy.  Nominees 
next attend interviews with the Public Service Commission, 
responsible for all civil servant hirings.  The Commission 
then makes a final hiring decision based on a candidate's 
entire portfolio. 
 
¶4.  (SBU) Topical or regional experience and interest help 
determine new hires' divisional placement within the MFA, but 
only at the discretion of the Permanent Secretary. 
Otherwise, new diplomats receive assignments according to 
Ministry needs.  Funding limitations and the absence of a 
Cypriot diplomatic academy condenses pre-job training into 
just four weeks, beginning with a two-week orientation that 
gives a "first understanding" of MFA practices and policies. 
General briefings from all divisional directors and lectures 
on the EU and its Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) 
highlight this broad overview.  A one-week session on the 
structure and functions of the Republic of Cyprus government 
follows at the Department of Public Administration's 
Personnel Division.  Initial training concludes with a week 
in Brussels with other EU member states' new diplomats, 
covering EU relations and diplomacy.  The session, run by the 
European Council, attracts attendees almost exclusively from 
the states that have joined the EU since 2004; Cyprus first 
participated in the program in 2006.  One junior diplomat 
noted the program's value to his work at the MFA, saying it 
enlightened him to "what the EU is really about, and how 
Cyprus does and does not influence decisions at the EU." 
 
--------------------------------------- 
YOU'RE ON YOUR OWN: LEARNING ON THE FLY 
--------------------------------------- 
 
NICOSIA 00000691  002 OF 003 
 
 
 
¶5.  (SBU) After completing their one-month training, new 
diplomats receive a portfolio and start work immediately, an 
experience one JO likened to "being thrown into the deep 
end."  Other MFA employees echoed her sentiments, but 
maintained the training was adequate.  Most of a new 
diplomat's acclimatization to the MFA occurs on the job 
through the advice of supervisors and informal seminars.  The 
MFA's small size and budget constrict its ability to convene 
or send employees to training courses, but it sponsors as 
many guest lectures as it can.  The Ministry also takes 
advantage of the European Diplomat Program, which convenes 
five times per year in various European capitals with the 
intent of informing new hires about EU practices and 
developing lower-level diplomatic networks between EU states. 
 The Ministry also provides a limited number of foreign 
language lessons to its diplomats, with an emphasis on 
French, in preparation for Cyprus's European Union Presidency 
in the second half of 2012.  No personalized training exists 
within the MFA, however.  A close contact in the Middle East 
division lamented the lack of area-specific seminars or 
programs and noted the MFA relied heavily on diplomats' prior 
experiences to develop expertise in their respective 
portfolios. 
 
----------------------------------------- 
ASSIGNMENT ABROAD: "A JACK OF ALL TRADES" 
----------------------------------------- 
 
¶6.  (SBU) New hires are eligible for assignment to foreign 
posts after one year at headquarters.  An internal catalog 
circulates every February soliciting openings at overseas 
missions.  A diplomat's rank, experience, and preference 
factor into the decisions, but the Permanent Secretary 
distributes assignments in line with MFA priorities. 
Existing language knowledge affects assignments, but there 
are no requirements (e.g., German proficiency is not 
mandatory for assignment to Berlin).  Diplomats receive word 
of the decisions in late March and depart for their new posts 
in September.  Assignments typically last four years, and 
Cypriot diplomats are allowed to serve up to nine consecutive 
years abroad; there is no cumulative time-limit for overseas 
service over an entire career.  Most Cypriot missions are 
small, with diplomats working across sections.  Even in a 
relatively large post like Paris, for example, one contact 
shuffled between political, consular, and cultural affairs 
offices. 
 
---------------------------------- 
MOVIN' ON UP, WITHOUT OUTSIDE HELP 
---------------------------------- 
 
¶7.  (SBU) While divisional and post assignments do not always 
reflect personal preferences, promotions are virtually 
guaranteed for all MFA employees.  All public servants 
receive annual evaluations, but more than 95 percent of 
government employees garner "excellent" reviews. 
Consequentially, employees move up the ranks regardless of 
actual job performance; one JO stated that any diplomat who 
achieves the rank of second secretary, which usually occurs 
after five years with the MFA, almost assuredly will become a 
first secretary within two more years and eventually retire 
as an ambassador (Reftel).  She called the system "very 
outdated and problematic," occasionally leading to less than 
satisfactory leadership.  The government has planned to 
investigate the practice of promotions, but for the moment, 
"no one really questions the system." 
 
¶8.  (SBU) Nevertheless, certain behaviors can jeopardize a 
career at the MFA, including political activity.  Political 
pressures and perspectives intrude on the functions of many 
Cypriot businesses and other government ministries, but 
contacts at the MFA repeatedly stressed the general absence 
of partisan politics from the ministry's daily work.  A 
junior diplomat noted that although many diplomats' political 
leanings are known, few discuss their beliefs openly with 
their colleagues.  He attributed this behavior to the MFA's 
need to function through political power shifts and to most 
diplomats' desire for longevity at the MFA -- outspoken 
backing for any particular party or candidate could prove 
detrimental after a change in government. 
 
¶9.  (SBU) Like most Cypriot government employees, MFA 
diplomats enjoy strong union representation.  The Pancyprian 
Public Employees Trade Union (PASYDY) has an MFA branch that 
focuses on seeking improvements in employment conditions, 
salaries, and benefits.  PASYDY speaks with a respectable 
voice on behalf of its members and seems to have had some 
success -- the MFA workday runs only until 1430 most days, 
 
NICOSIA 00000691  003 OF 003 
 
 
for example.  Some diplomats have complained over the union's 
constant calls for workforce-wide votes on numerous topics, 
however, which have caused a certain degree of apathy, 
especially among those serving tours abroad. 
 
-------------------------------- 
DIPLOMATS FEEL VALUED, SATISFIED 
-------------------------------- 
 
¶10.  (SBU) The majority of junior and mid-level Cypriot 
diplomats appear pleased with their jobs.  Despite the 
"severe" shortfall in formal training, one believed she was 
prepared enough for her first day's work, and that while 
additional instruction would have been valuable, the minimal 
preparation had made her first year "quite exciting." 
Another noted that, since the absence of just one coworker is 
felt Ministry-wide, each employee feels valued.  Diplomats 
expressed their disappointment with some of the bureaucratic 
methods that slow many MFA projects, however, and some took 
exception to the generational gap in technology use, whereby 
many senior officials remained wary of using modern 
communications like e-mail. 
 
-------------------------------------- 
COMMENT: SOME OF CYPRUS'S BEST AT WORK 
-------------------------------------- 
 
¶11.  (SBU) The Cypriot MFA is capable and competent despite 
its small size and limited budget.  The diplomatic corps 
draws many of the country's best and brightest to its ranks, 
attracted both by public sector perks and a desire for 
service to the (Greek Cypriot) nation.  The Permanent 
Secretary plays the most important role in the development of 
 
SIPDIS 
the diplomatic corps, with far more significance than even 
the FM.  The near-total control of the hiring process, 
assignments, and training curriculums gives the incumbent 
great leverage to influence the MFA's practices long after 
his term ends.  Many of the junior diplomats consulted for 
this telegram, for example, hold horribly hard lines 
vis-a-vis Turkish Cypriots and Turkey, positions mirroring 
those of former PermSec and mentor Sotos Zakheous.  The MFA's 
newest hires are entering during the tenure of Alexander 
Zenon, a lower-profile diplomat whose ideology is tougher to 
read.  We doubt the new JO's will be calling for an end to 
"so-called Turkish Cypriot isolation" or lamenting the T/Cs' 
lot anytime soon, however. 
SCHLICHER