CAIRO – 19 October 2021: The heads of state of Egypt, Greece, and Cyprus agreed Tuesday on expanding the political harmony among them into more fruitful projects in the economic, cultural, security, and military sectors.
Trilateral Ties
They also tackled existing and proposed projects in the fields of gas, electricity, energy, tourism, transportation, agriculture, and climate change, as indicated by the Egyptian presidency's statement.
Equally, the three chiefs of state displayed their efforts on the front of combating illegal migration, terrorism, and extremism. They also agreed on continuous coordination and consultation over issues pertaining to the region's stability, mainly the Palestinian Cause, and the developments in Libya, Syria, and Lebanon.
Further, the three leaders addressed the necessity of respecting the unity and sovereignty of Eastern Mediterranean countries and not meddling with their internal affairs to ensure the stability of the region.
In addition, President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi presented the latest developments of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) issue given its relevance to Egypt's water security and rights. The president asserted that Egypt is deploying all possible efforts to reach a legal binding agreement on the filling and operation of the dam.
That is in light to the September United Nations Security Council (UNSC) presidential deceleration on the matter urging Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan to resume talks and reach a deal within a reasonable time frame. The statement was issued after Egypt had resorted to the UNSC in the aftermath of the failure of the 10-year-old negotiations.
Remarks
President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi said that electricity linkage with Greece and Cyprus is getting Egypt close to linkage with Europe. On another level, he commended the positive cooperation among the three countries in the face of COVID-19.
With regard to regional issues tackled in the summit, the president said that Egypt, Cyprus, and Greece back elections scheduled for December in Libya as well as the deportation of mercenaries from the country. President Sisi also asserted Egypt's support to Cyprus in its endeavors to accomplish a comprehensive and fair solution to its cause. The Cypriot issue revolves around the establishment of a non-recognized state by Turkish people on the Cypriot territories, and consequently, the infiltration of maritime borders by Turkish vessels.
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis stated that electricity linkage with Egypt is aimed at the diversification of energy sources pointing out that Egypt will be an essential source of solar energy supplied to Europe.
Mitsotakis added that Egypt is an important source of energy in Eastern Mediterranean. He further noted that Egypt is playing a central role in supplying Europe with energy in light of the disruptions the market is experiencing.
The Greek prime minister underlined that cooperation with Egypt also extends to combating climate change, and mitigating the impact of COVID-19 pandemic so as Greece had gifted Egypt with 250,000 vaccine doses.
Speaking of the Cypriot Cause, the Greek chief of state stressed that his country's stance is aligned with the United Nations Security Council's (UNSC) resolutions asserting that any future agreements must be within that framework.
Mitsotakis highlighted the maritime demarcation agreements signed among the three states saying they are an exemplary model, and that their articulation took long time to come out as such.
In another context, the Greek head of state said that the summit included exchange of views over the circumstances in Libya. He emphasized the necessity of holding elections on time in December, and the withdrawal of mercenaries and foreign forces from the North African state.
The Greek prime minister underscored the three states' congruence on the salience of democratic transition in Libya, and of benefiting from economic cooperation initiatives, which will crystallize in the International Conference on Libya to be hosted by Paris in November.
Similarly, the three countries support immediate stability in Afghanistan. In that context, the issue of migrants was discussed. Mitsotakis said the issue is of great concern to Greece commending Egypt's calm way of handling the problem without any blackmail attempts.
Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades said that the three countries agree on working together to combat terrorism, and achieve security and stability in the region.
Tue, Oct. 19, 2021
