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By Dr. Andrestinos N. Papadopoulos, Ambassador a.h.
With twelve articles, since April 2010 until recently, we took unreservedly a stand in favour of the further strengthening and deepening of our relations with Israel, the only non-Muslim country in our region. In the first article (“Finding a new approach to Cyprus-Israel relations”, Cyprus Mail, 1 April 2010), we made an evaluation of the factors affecting them, i.e. the stand of Turkey, of the Arab countries and that of the European Union. Today, there is another important factor, the energy sector and in particular the necessity of cooperation with a view to exploiting and exporting gas to Europe and the Far East, making use of a liquefaction terminal in Cyprus.
In the last article (“Kasoulides’ visit to Israel – A political analysis”, Financial Mirror, 24 April 2013) we expressed the view that the forthcoming visit of President Anastasiades to Israel would “usher in a new era of a deeper geopolitical cooperation between the two countries with a view to promoting peace and stability in the wider region of the Eastern Mediterranean.”
It is gratifying to observe, that at the working lunch with President Shimon Peres, President Anastasiades stated: “We are inaugurating a new era in relations between our two countries” and that during the talks there was an exchange of views, inter alia, on all four factors mentioned above. Let us, then, examine them in detail.
The concern that, after Netanyahu’s recent apology over the Mavi Marmara incident, the Cyprus-Israel relations might adversely be affected was allayed, as assurances were received, at the highest level, that relations between Israel and Cyprus do not depend on any political developments in this respect. Netanyahu himself promised that Israel would continue to maintain good ties with Cyprus, regardless of its newly-rekindled relationship with Turkey. No matter what Turkish officials say, the fact remains that there are doubts about Turkey’s sincerity and the rapprochement exercise will not be easy and smooth, as suggested by Erdogan’s rhetoric of support to the Palestinians and Syrian rebels and the condemnation of Israeli air strikes in and near Damascus, having as target advanced missiles destined for Hezbollah.
Moreover, the fact that Turkey seeks to play a protagonistic role in the region diminishes the chances of Israel to talk directly to all its Arab neighbours. The relations of Cyprus with the Arab world are excellent and they are not affected by the strengthening of its relations with Israel. As stated by the Minister of Defence, Mr Photiou, “our cooperation with Israel is no threat to anyone.” As a matter of fact, he did not rule out similar cooperation with other neighbouring countries such as Greece, Lebanon and Egypt. In any event, the Cypriot diplomacy should follow closely the repercussions of the “Arab Spring” and the developments in Syria.
As far as Europe is concerned, it is a fact that Cyprus lies at the border of the European Union with the Eastern Mediterranean, and in this respect President Peres stressed that without Cyprus, Israel is far away from Europe. Indeed, Cyprus and Greece constitute the bridge for Israel to Europe and the discovery of hydrocarbons in our region gives to this bridge a geostrategic dimension. For this reason, during the talks, emphasis was placed on energy matters.
In particular, the common commitment to exploit cross-border natural gas and oil reserves was confirmed. Concerning the creation of an LNG terminal in Cyprus, President Anastasiades stated that the two governments were still “at the stage of deliberations”, adding that private Israeli energy companies had expressed a “manifest interest” in acquiring a stake in an LNG investment for the construction of the terminal at Vassiliko. On energy security, Anastasiades and Netanyahu had agreed, among other things, to cooperate on military projects to protect the gas fields common to both countries. Moreover, according President Anastasiades, Netanyahu promised to work with Cyprus to protect offshore gasfields, regardless of any deals it makes with Turkey, or any threats issued by Ankara. Energy issues aside, the two sides discussed pending agreements on health, research and development, technology, culture and fighting terrorism and organised crime.
In conclusion, the visit of President Anastasiades to Israel, the first after Greece to a foreign country, proved that Cyprus is Israel’s most reliable neighbour and genuine friend. The realism showed by the President of the Republic in his evaluations, aiming at avoiding over-optimistic expectations, and the personal relationship which developed during the visit, constitute a positive contribution towards the strengthening of the relations between the two countries. In fact, they guarantee that the strategic dialogue, which started in Jerusalem, will have a continuation and results.
