The official visit of the Minister of Defence, Michalis Giorgallas, to the USA, which began on July 15, was concluded on July 21.
As stated in a press release issued by the Ministry of Defence, Giorgallas, accompanied by the Chief of the National Guard, Lieutenant General Dimokritos Zervakis, paid an official visit to the US from July 15 to 21, 2023, during which he signed the declaration of the National Guard’s inclusion in the State Partnership Program of the U.S. Department of Defense’s State Partnership Program with the National Guard of the State of New Jersey.
On behalf of the State of New Jersey, the Declaration was signed by the Secretary of State, Tahesha Way, in the presence of the Chief of the United States National Guard, General Daniel R. Hokanson, high-ranking state officials and the Adjutant General of the New Jersey National Guard, Brigadier General Lisa J. Hou.
In the context of the visit of the Cyprus delegation to New Jersey, a group of National Guard officers participated in a conference and in Working Groups that were held with the aim of presenting the thematic units of the cooperation, mutual information, exchange of views, as well as the next steps. The conference was addressed by the Minister of Defence, the Chief of the National Guard and the Adjutant General of the New Jersey National Guard.
The Minister of Defence also participated in events celebrating the 30 years of the State Partnership Program held in Washington with the participation of all US States who are partners in the Program, as well as the hundred partner countries around the world.
It is noted that as part of his visit, Giorgallas had separate meetings, among others, with the Secretary of State of New Jersey, Tahesha Way, with the Chief of the National Guard of the United States, General Daniel R. Hokanson, the Adjutant General of the National Guard of the State of New Jersey, Brigadier General Lisa J. Hou, the President of the Federation of Cypriot American Organizations, Kyriakos Papastylianou, the leadership of the American Hellenic Educational Progressive Association (AHEPA), Jimmy Kokotas, Savvas Tsivikos, Vasilis Mosaidis, as well as the leadership of the Jewish Institute for National Security of America (JINSA), with whom he discussed issues of bilateral interest between the Republic of Cyprus and the United States, in the field of defense and security.
Giorgallas also visited the Cypriot neighborhood of New York, where he delivered a memorial speech on the 49th anniversary of the 1974 coup d’etat and Turkish invasion of Cyprus, the press release concludes.
Source: Cyprus News Agency