The strategic partner relationship among Greece, Cyprus and Israel is based on solid foundations, said Greek Foreign Affairs Minister Nikos Dendias after a meeting with his counterparts of Israel Yair Lapid and of Cyprus Ioannis Kasoulides held in Athens on Tuesday.
All three countries share a joint vision for peace, stability and prosperity in the region, Dendias said, and they discussed including in their cooperation more countries that also share the same vision for the future. He also underlined that the trilateral partnership is not affected by other regional developments or relations with other countries.
Further strengthening the cooperation of the three countries and the US (the 3+1 partnership) was another issue the ministers talked about, while they also met with visiting US Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs Victoria Nuland, who stopped by during their working lunch, he noted.
The three ministers also discussed the international community’s condemnation of the Russian invasion of Ukraine which “shows that revisionism in the 21st century will no longer be tolerated,” Dendias said, adding that this does not necessarily concern only Russia. It brings to mind the Cyprus issue, he said, in which all involved sides should make an effort to reach a fair, sustainable and permanent solution on the basis of UN resolutions.
Responding to his Greek counterpart, Kasoulides noted that Cyprus’ stance “is consistent, in that as soon as Turkey lifts the obstacles to resolving the Cyprus issue, we will be able to move ahead and create good neighborly relations that will benefit regional stability and security.”
The Greek minister also briefed his counterparts on his recent visit to Odessa and the situation in the city of Mariupol, which has a large Greek diaspora community, and where “it is apparent that war crimes have been committed.” Dendias thanked Lapid for Israel’s help in evacuating Greek citizens and ethnic Greeks from Mariupol and for accomodating them safely in the Uman synagogue.
Greece is ready to support any effort to revive the Middle East peace process and is ready to play a constructive role in possible contacts between Israelis and Palestinians, Dendias underlined, while he also mentioned his concern for the occupation by settlers of the Little Petra hotel in Jerusalem, which belongs to the Greek Orthodox Partiarchate in the city.
The three also discussed EU’s strategy for seeking alternative sources of liquefied natural gas and electrical interconnections among countries.
They also discussed broadening further their collaboration in energy, transport, economy and trade.
Israeli minister Lapid pointed out that the tripartite partership pays emphasis to the energy market, and noted that the aim of the war in Ukraine is a change in balance of the energy markets in Europe and the Middle East. This, he said, carries dangers and threats that must be considered by the three.
SOURCE; AMNA
