DIPLOMACY: Cypriot Foreign Minister to meet Mike Pompeo as Cyprus-US ties grow

Cyprus Foreign Minister Nikos Christodoulides will meet US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo as Nicosia and Washington seek to strengthen cooperation in energy and regional security.

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While in Washington, Christodoulides will also hold talks with US Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs, Wess Mitchell.

According to a diplomatic source, the Minister’s schedule is not yet finalised, however Christodoulides is expected to arrive in New York on November 6, to meet with Nikki Haley, the US Ambassador to the United Nations who recently announced her resignation.

Immediately after, the Foreign Minister will continue his contacts in Washington by meeting his US counterpart, Mike Pompeo.

The source told CNA that the postponed meeting between Wess Mitchell and Nikos Christodoulides in Nicosia will eventually take place in Washington, due to difficulties to include Cyprus in the US official’s itinerary in the region.

Mitchell was to visit Nicosia again ahead of planned exploratory drilling by ExxonMobil in Cyprus’ exclusive economic zone, but diplomatic source said that Washington probably feels that “Ankara got the message”, thus the US official’s visit is probably not necessary.

 Turkey has warned it will not allow foreign countries or energy giants to conduct “unauthorized research activities” for hydrocarbons in areas Ankara deems to be under its jurisdiction.

Moreover, Ankara has announced plans to start drilling for hydrocarbons in the Eastern Mediterranean close to Cyprus’ offshore blocks.