Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis referred to the potential to extend the trilateral Greece-Cyprus-Israel cooperation through the participation of other countries such as India, in statements after the end of the meeting with Cyprus President Nikos Christodoulides and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Nicosia on Tuesday.
In their joint statements, the three leaders underlined the strategic-importance relations among their countries and the common will for further deepening of relations in all the sectors.
Mitsotakis pointed out the three countries’ interest to leave a geopolitical and commercial imprint through their actions.
“I believe that what we could examine thoroughly is the possibility to invite the Indian Prime Minister to our scheme,” in the next Summit, the Greek premier said. Mitsotakis also called the trilateral Greece-Cyprus-Israel scheme resilient and successful and referred to other issues such as security, energy, civil protection, technology and artificial intelligence.
Christodoulides
In his statements, the President of Cyprus said among others that “this is without doubt a dynamic strategic alliance between partners that share the same democratic values and targets and that invest in the common vision of stability, prosperity and security in the area and beyond this.”
On the energy issue, Christodoulides said that “we agreed that the natural gas and the renewable energy sources are the prime pillar of cooperation in the region, especially in light of the recent geographic developments and the insecurity in energy that dictate the need for increased interconnectivity and alternative energy sources.”
On the Cyprus issue, he said that he briefed the other two leaders on his initiatives aiming at the restart of the deliberations for an overall solution based on the agreed UN framework and thanked Greece and Israel for their unconditional support. The next trilateral summit will take place in 2024, he revealed.
Netanyahu
The relations between the three countries have blossomed, following the trilateral mechanism of collaboration, asserted Netanyahu, speaking on his side. For example, hundreds of thousands of visitors from Israel visited Cyprus and Greece, while there are also investments among the three and very close collaboration in several sectors, including natural gas, electricity grid connectrions, and fighting fires.
The three, he said, discussed how Israel would export its natural gas, and the same should be done by Cyprus and Greece, with decisions ready within 3 to 6 months.
In addition, the trilateral members remained committed to collaborating closely on fighting terrorism and on extending their collaboration as a group with India.
Israel’s market in dairy products is expected to open very soon to receiving products from abroad, and Cyprus and Greece will be able to export to his country, he revealed. He said he looked forward to next year’s trilateral, which will take place in Israel.
