Bilateral relations between Cyprus and Israel in the field of Defence and Security, the implementation of the Bilateral Defence Cooperation Programme, the ongoing cooperation in armaments, the trilateral cooperation between Cyprus, Israel and Greece, the ongoing tensions in the region, as well as current international and regional developments were the main topics of discussion during a meeting which Cyprus Defence Minister, Charalambos Petrides, had with his Israeli counterpart, Benny Gantz, on Thursday in Tel Aviv.
According to a ministry statement, Petrides condemned in his remarks after the meeting the terrorist rocket attacks and supported Israel’s right to self-defence, while expressing deep regret for the human losses and injuries, and warmly welcomed the ceasefire agreement, noting Egypt’s crucial role in the mediation.
It is added that the Defence Minister also had a meeting with the National Security Advisor of the State of Israel, during which they discussed issues of cooperation and developments in the wider Eastern Mediterranean region, while after his visit to the Patriarchate of Jerusalem and the Holy Sepulchre, he met with His Beatitude Patriarch Theophilos III, with whom he discussed issues of concern to the Patriarchate and Hellenism in general.
Finally, it is noted that on the meetings’ sidelines, Petrides visited the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial, where he laid a wreath in memory of the millions of victims of the Holocaust, and then the War Cemetery in Ramlah, where he paid his respects to the 11 Cypriots who died during the Second World War and are buried there.
Source: Cyprus News Agency