UK wants to be Seychelles' closest partner, says new high commissioner 

Jeffrey Frank Glekin was accredited on Tuesday. (Seychelles Nation)

The newly accredited British High Commissioner to Seychelles said he wants the United Kingdom to be the island nation's closest partner, particularly in areas like environmental protection.

Jeffrey Frank Glekin presented his credentials to President Wavel Ramkalawan at State House on Tuesday.

Glekin talked about good governance and expressed his desire to see the civil service modernise.  

He also talked about other areas such as "shared democratic values, cultural exchanges, our focus on youth and our focus on education that the two countries could continue working in."

Glekin was previously the British ambassador to Bolivia, and his mission in Seychelles is his first as a high commissioner for his country.

"That's something very special because being a high commissioner means you're in a fellow Commonwealth nation," he said.

The high commissioner said he has had a focus on environment and climate change throughout his diplomatic career and believes "it is the issue that is the most pressing, as it is the issue of our times and it's our greatest challenge as humanity."

Glekin said he worked passionately on fighting against deforestation and supporting countries in sustainable development in his previous roles and that this is a skillset he can bring to his new role as the new British High Commissioner to Seychelles.

"The UK and Seychelles may be far away from each other geographically, but we share many common values, and we share similarities because we are both island nations," he added.

"We have a deep connection to the sea, we have a deep connection to the oceans that surround us and a deep responsibility for protecting our maritime security and that includes the environmental challenges that come with," he added.

Bilateral relations between the two countries have been established since Seychelles became a crown colony separated from Mauritius in 1903, and gained its independence in 1976.

Glekin replaces former British High Commissioner to Seychelles, Patrick Lynch, who paid his farewell visit to President Ramkalawan earlier this month.