Press Releases

General Mohamed Zaki, Commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces, Minister of Defence and Military Production of the Arab Republic of Egypt, Mr Charalambos Petrides, Minister of Defence of the Republic of Cyprus and Mr Nikolaos Panagiotopoulos, Minister of National Defence of the Hellenic Republic met in Cairo, on 20th June, 2022, for the purpose of further promoting their joint defence and military cooperation.

The Ministers of Defence reviewed the progress of the defence and security cooperation and expressed their appreciation of the joint accomplishments. They 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 Ministers 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.

The Ministers of Defence have 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. they have recognized the military and security tasks and burdens that necessitate boosting coordinate and cooperation efforts.

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. 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 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). They also discussed and welcomed the participation of friendly countries in these exercises, which represent a cornerstone for coordination and capabilities integration to enhance regional peace, security and stability.

They 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 requirments was also highlighted.

The three Ministers of Defence agreed on the following:

a. 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.

b. To hold the next trilateral meeting of Ministers of Defence of Egypt, Greece and Cyprus in Greece, in 2023.

(EK)