Israel, Greece and Cyprus hold trilateral consultations

Nations discuss boosting economic relations and combating terrorism at regional and global levels

The Secretaries General of the Ministries of Foreign Affairs of Greece and Israel held political consultations on Wednesday in Athens, according to a ministry statement.
Greek Ambassador Anastassis Mitsialis and his counterpart Israeli Ambassador Nissim Ben Shitrit "reviewed progress achieved in their bilateral relations in various fields of cooperation since the 1st High Level Cooperation Council of 8 October 2013," and discussed the preparation of a summit.
During the meeting, officials also raised the possibility of cooperating in the Middle East against the "terrorist threat at regional and global levels."
The parties also "confirmed their willingness to promote their economic relations and to strengthen their cooperation in the field of energy," the statement said, stressing the need to encourage cooperation in the fields of energy, trade, tourism, research, industrial development, water technologies, environmental protection and agriculture.
Ambassador Alexandros Zenon, their Cypriot counterpart, joined the discussions, which focused on "concern for illegal actions and provocations in the sea waters of the Eastern Mediterranean in violation of international law."
Last week, Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman said that the right of Cyprus to exploit oil and gas off its shores should be respected by all countries, including Turkey, according to Israeli daily Haaretz.
Liberman made the comment following a meeting with his Cypriot counterpart Ioannis Kasoulides.
"All nations must respect the sovereignty of their neighbors and it is extremely necessary not to add tension to a strife-torn region, "he said.
Turkey does not recognize Cyprus and is the only country to recognize the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.