The Ministers of Defence of Cyprus, Greece and Egypt expressed their concern and condemned any unilateral actions that violate the sovereignty, sovereign rights and territorial integrity of any country in the wider East Mediterranean region and highlighted that its necessary for all countries to respect international law and the UN Charter, the UN convention on the law of the sea (UNCLOS) and all other relevant agreements.
General Mohamed Zaki, Commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces, Minister of Defence and Military Production of the Arab Republic Of Egypt, Charalambos Petrides, Minister of Defence of the Republic of Cyprus and Nikolaos Panagiotopoulos, Minister of National Defence of the Hellenic Republic met on Monday in Cairo.
A joint statement was issued following their 5th Trilateral Meeting which says that they reviewed the progress of the defence and security cooperation and expressed their appreciation of the joint accomplishments. They also reaffirmed their common will and determination to further develop coordination, cooperation and joint endeavors to boost security and stability as well as to support the creation of an environment in the Eastern Mediterranean conducive to growth well-being and prosperity of their people.
The Ministers of Defence also reviewed developments and perspectives concerning the security and strategic conditions in the Middle East and East Mediterranean as well as the tensions affecting the security and stability of the broader region, the joint statement reads.
The three Ministers also agreed on a joint vision that supports the continuously increasing strategic importance of the East Mediterranean in the present and future of the portfolio of energy climate change and security, the security of transportation lines and international maritime trade routes. They also stressed the importance of their cooperation for enhancing the security of energy supply, providing an additional source of energy supply of Europe and have recognized the military and security tasks and burdens that necessitate boosting coordinate and cooperation efforts.
According to the joint statement, the Ministers of Defence of the three countries expressed their deep concern about the restoration of terrorist organizations and their activity in many conflict and tension hotbeds in the Middle East and the African Sahel.
At the same time smuggling with all its forms, illegal migration and human trafficking, still pose a constant challenge, they agreed. Furthermore the mercenaries phenomenon, the transfer of foreign fighters and support for armed militias, all constitute a dangerous threat to regional and international peace and security and impose further responsibilities to cooperate and coordinate countermeasures against these challenges, the statement says.
The Ministers of Defence cherished the efforts exerted by the Armed forces of the their countries to implement the joint training programs for the three services (Army- Navy- Air Force) and welcomed the participation of friendly countries in these exercise which represent a cornerstone for coordination and capabilities integration to enhance regional peace, security and stability.
They also stressed the importance of international cooperation to contain global security tension, mitigate global polarization and end armed conflicts immediately. The settlement of crises through diplomatic and political means for avoiding long and geographically-stressed confrontations that will harm the entire world particularly the developing countries in terms of securing their basic and strategic needs of nutrition and energy security and defence requirements, were also highlighted during the meeting.
The statement furthermore says that the three Ministers of Defence agreed to intensify communications, consultations, exchange of information, evaluations and coordination of joint efforts to meet the scale of military and security challenges and threats regionally as well as to satisfy the requirements of enhancing the security and interests of the three countries.
The next trilateral meeting will be held in Greece in 2023.
In a brief statement to the press the Cyprus Defence Minister said that the three countries enjoy long-lasting and genuine relations which are enhanced not only in the areas of defence and security but also in other sectors such as energy and trade. He said that today they had the chance to review these ties and to talk about the recent developments in the eastern Med and the Mideast regions.
Petrides said that the three countries have excellent relations and there is potential for further cooperation with respect to international law. He also noted that all the goals and visions said in today’s meeting will be met until the next one in 2023 in Greece.
A press release by the Ministry says that in the context of his visit Petrides had a bilateral meeting with his Egyptian counterpart Colonel General Mohamed Zaki with whom they discussed matters of bilateral and regional interest placing an emphasis on the the countries’ defence cooperation.
Source: Cyprus News Agency