Filenews 29 November 2025
Cyprus was successfully re-elected to the Council of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) during the vote held in London, on Friday, November 28, 2025, in the framework of the 34th General Assembly of the Organization. Cyprus was a candidate for re-election as one of the 26 members of the Category C Council.
As stated in a statement by the Deputy Ministry of Shipping, in a difficult election, Cyprus was not only re-elected, but managed to significantly increase the support it received in votes from the member states, compared to the previous electoral process. Specifically, our country rose from 12th to 7th place among 26 candidate countries, securing more votes and confirming its strong international presence.
"Cyprus was first elected to the IMO Council in 1987. Since then, our country has maintained a continuous and active presence in the Council, due to its important work, its active participation in international shipping processes and its constructive contribution to addressing the challenges of the industry. The continuous re-election of Cyprus demonstrates the confidence of the member states in the capabilities and credibility of our country," it added.
"This re-election enhances Cyprus' ability to actively participate in strategic decision-making that affect international shipping, while promoting Cyprus as an important international shipping hub," the Deputy Ministry concludes.
More specifically, all the results are as follows:
In the First Category (A) which concerns the provision of international shipping services and consists of 10 members, the following were elected: China, Greece, Italy, Japan, Liberia, Norway, Panama, the Republic of Korea, the United Kingdom and the United States of America.
In the Second Category (B) which concerns international maritime trade and is also made up of 10 members, the following were elected: Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, India, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden and the United Arab Emirates.
In the Third (C) category, which concerns special interests in shipping and navigation, and consists of 20 members, the following members were elected: Bahamas, Belgium, Chile, Cyprus, Egypt, Finland, Indonesia, Jamaica, Malaysia, Malta, Mexico, Morocco, Nigeria, Peru, the Philippines, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Africa and Turkey.
More specifically, in this category, the results are as follows: Singapore 149, Saudi Arabia 142, Belgium 141, Turkey 139, Indonesia 138, Qatar 137, Cyprus 136, Philippines 136, Malta 133, Egypt 132, Morocco 130, Jamaica 129, Malaysia 129, Peru 127, Chile 126, Mexico 126, Bahamas 125, Finland 118, South Africa 117, Nigeria 116.
The new IMO Council will be formed into a body at its 136th Session on December 4, when the President and Vice-President will be elected for the new two-year term.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs welcomes
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs welcomes the re-election of Cyprus to the Council of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) for the period 2026-27 with 136 votes, and received the seventh position, compared to the twelfth it had received when elected in 2023.
The elections, as stated in a relevant announcement, "took place today (28/11/2025) at the Organization's headquarters in London, during the 34th General Assembly of the IMO. Through the joint effort and excellent cooperation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Deputy Ministry of Shipping, Cyprus has succeeded in maintaining its position in the IMO Council, to which it has been elected continuously since 1987."
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs expresses its warm thanks to those who contributed to another success of Cyprus in multilateralism and especially in a sector of key importance for the Cypriot economy such as Shipping.
