Cyprus, Greece and Armenia’s Foreign Affairs Ministers had a trilateral meeting, on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York during which they discussed the Cyprus reunification process, the Eastern Mediterranean and the situation in Armenia and expressed their readiness to continue active contacts in the context of the trilateral format in order to “bring it to a qualitatively new level and expand the scope of cooperation.”
In the meantime, following a bilateral meeting Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias had with his Cypriot counterpart Ioannis Kasoulides, he expressed his satisfaction about the lifting of the US embargo on arms sales in Cyprus.
“I think thanks also are due to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, but also to Senators Menendez and Rubio,” he noted, adding that “that this is a reward for the consistent attitude of the Republic of Cyprus all these years; The new perception, which exists, of total cooperation against any form of aggression.”
The two Ministers also expressed concern as they said about Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan’s threats against Greece.
Afterwards, they had a tripartite meeting with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Armenia.
“He explained to us what is happening in the South Caucasus, and we had the opportunity to jointly articulate our firm position in favour of the independence and territorial integrity of Armenia,” Dendias noted.
“Any revisionism, from wherever it comes from, from whatever country it starts – and, in fact, with the attempt to use the energy situation as a weapon against certain states and to attempt changes on the ground – will find us on the opposite side,” he added.
“Greece and Cyprus have always come together with one axis and one common position: adherence to international law, to the rights of independence and territorial integrity of all states, and, of course, to the International Law of the Sea,” Dendias pointed out.
On his part, Kasoulides expressed satisfaction about the lifting of the US arms embargo in Cyprus while he expressed the solidarity of the Republic of Cyprus towards the Armenian people who, as he said, are being tested once again.
The Greek Foreign Minister stated that together with the Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis he is set to hold a total of 40 meetings with the ultimate goal “to deepen the relations we already have, but also to explain to all our interlocutors the constructive role that Greece plays in its wider region – and in the Balkans and the Eastern Mediterranean but also to promote the great national issue of Cyprus”.
In the meantime, in a press release about the trilateral meeting the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that security issues related to the South Caucasus and the Eastern Mediterranean were discussed.
Armenian FM Ararat Mirzoyan “presented the situation resulting from the recent Azerbaijani aggression against Armenia,” it added. Dendias, the press release continued, referred to the escalation of the hostile rhetoric of Turkey against Greece. Kasoulides briefed his counterparts on the situation in the Eastern Mediterranean and on the latest developments regarding the Cyprus reunification process, it said.
Ministers Kasoulides and Dendias expressed their solidarity and support to the Armenian people.
“The Foreign Ministers expressed readiness to continue active contacts within the trilateral format in order to bring it to a qualitatively new level and expand the scope of cooperation,” the press release noted.
It further said that they also discussed issues related to the Armenia-EU partnership.
Source: Cyprus News Agency