The President of Cyprus on Whether Democracy Still Works | Nikhil Kamath | People by WTF

**Nikhil Kamath** (0:07)
Can I ask you, how does it feel to be in power? How does it feel to be the president of a country?
This conversation was different. Nikos isn't a politician who knows history. He's a historian who became the president of the Republic of Cyprus. A nation that's the bridge between Europe and the Middle East, which is a wild place to be running a country right now. Just that made him so different from everyone I've spoken to, and made me redefine my idea of what a politician can be.
And honestly, I think I left with more questions than answers. Hopefully, things like AI will lead us to a point where studying history and philosophy become a lot more relevant all over again.

**Nikos Christodoulides** (1:18)
I'm a bit concerned with this technological progress. I'm a bit concerned how it's going to be in 10, 20 years. What's going to happen if AI replaces 80% of the workforce? I hope this is not the scenario, but we're talking about the future scenario. But they will lose their work. How they will react?
Can I ask you something? Why you ask for this interview?

**Nikhil Kamath** (2:05)
Would you like coffee?

**Nikos Christodoulides** (2:06)
Yes, please.

**Nikhil Kamath** (2:07)
Black coffee?

**Nikos Christodoulides** (2:07)
Espresso.

**Nikhil Kamath** (2:09)
Espresso. How would you like me to address you, Mr. President?

**Nikos Christodoulides** (2:15)
Nikos.

**Nikhil Kamath** (2:15)
Nikos?

**Nikos Christodoulides** (2:16)
Yes.

**Nikhil Kamath** (2:16)
Okay. So you start your days early, is it?

**Nikos Christodoulides** (2:22)
You'll ask me, we start already?

**Nikhil Kamath** (2:25)
Yeah.

**Nikos Christodoulides** (2:26)
So I wake up every day at 5.3 in the morning.
I'm going to the gym at 6 I spend an hour and a half there for a minute running and then doing some exercise. It's the best way to start my day, a long day. I'm trying always every day to have a power nap, 45 minutes, around 2.30, 2 o'clock, 2.30. And then I start again up to 10, 11 o'clock. That's my everyday program.

**Nikhil Kamath** (3:06)
Power nap is a...

**Nikos Christodoulides** (3:08)
It's a Mediterranean habit, but it's very important. It's a must.

**Nikhil Kamath** (3:17)
I love the fact that you're a historian first and an academic. So when I was going through all that you have accomplished in life, which is so much, the thing that really stood out for me is historian.
I feel like so much of what is happening today has happened in the past, but we don't pay enough attention.

**Nikos Christodoulides** (3:42)
You're right because, you know, history repeats itself, and it's very important to understand what happened in order to, you know, in a way predict what is going to happen. And especially when we are coming from a small country, in a region of great geopolitical importance, the most important element of Cyprus, if you ask me, is geography.
We connect Europe with the Middle East, with the Gulf, with Africa. So it is very, very important to understand the past. So, studying history in a way, it is an advantage. And especially, you know, starting in the United States, when I decided back in, when I graduated from high school, 1991, I had to go to the army for 26 months.
It is a mandatory to go in the army in Cyprus. Now it's 14 months, not 26 months. So when I finished my military services, I decided to go to the United States for two reasons. The first one, it was my brother was there, so it would be much more easier for me. And the second one, it was the majority of Cypriots, they used to go and study in the UK because of this special relationship that you also have. Both of us used to be-

**Nikhil Kamath** (5:12)
Do we call it special? Special relationship?

**Nikos Christodoulides** (5:14)
Love and hate relationship, I call it, even today. And the second reason, it was much more from the financial point of view, it was much more easier to go and study in the United States because it was possible to work, university fees were much cheaper, this is not the case today, but anyway. So I went to the United States and I think it influenced in a very decisive way how I approach everything. There is an American dream, at least it used to be an American dream. I don't know how the situation is today.
So studying in the United States, when I was growing up, I was always wanted to get involved with politics. But when I went to the United States to start my studies, I ended up wanting to follow an academic career.