Statement of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Nikos Dendias, during his visit to Israel (Jerusalem, 28 July 2019)

Statement of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Nikos Dendias, during his visit to Israel (Jerusalem, 28 July 2019)Reporter: Minister, you had a number of meetings here in Jerusalem with the country’s political leadership. You discussed bilateral as well as regional issues. What are the initial conclusions from the meetings you had?

N. DENDIAS: First of all, I’m very happy to be here in Israel. I am pleased to have seen the President of the Republic, Mr. Rivlin, I will see the Prime Minister, Mr. Netanyahu, and I saw my counterpart, Foreign Minister Katz. Beyond that, first of all, on a bilateral level, our relations with Israel are excellent in all sectors: political, cultural, trade, innovation issues. They are also important on the trilateral level. Greece-Cyprus-Israel, which we are trying to expand into 3+1 -in other words, with the United States- on certain issues. But the trilateral scheme will remain. Beyond that, I must say that the briefing here on everything that is happening in Cyprus is very important to us.

Tomorrow I will accompany Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on his first visit to Cyprus. And I think a clear message must be sent to the Turks: That the violation of the sovereignty and sovereign rights of the Republic of Cyprus is unacceptable.

Reporter: Is the trilateral cooperation that is under way strengthening the position of Greece and Cyprus? And what reaction did you get from Israel regarding Turkey’s provocations?

N. DENDIAS: First of all, I think it is obvious that Greece’s relationship with Israel is a stabilizing factor in the region. It is very, very important, especially when you bear in mind that Israeli-Turkish relations are not good. Beyond that, it is always useful to take the opportunity to explain to our Israeli friends the problems Greece is facing with regard to Turkey’s provocations.

Reporter: Thank you very much.