The Chairman of the House of Representatives’ Committee on Foreign and European Affairs, Harris Georgiades, highlighted the geopolitical importance of the Eastern Mediterranean and called for strengthened cooperation within the 3+1 scheme (Cyprus, Greece, Israel, and the United States), during an intervention at an inter-parliamentary meeting of the four countries in Jerusalem Thursday.
The Eastern Mediterranean, he noted, is a region of critical strategic significance that ‘will either generate tensions, conflicts and threats to international security, or evolve into a zone of stability, investment and energy interconnection.’
Its future trajectory, he argued, will depend largely on effective coordination among the three liberal democracies of the region and on sustained US engagement, which together form the core of the 3+1 partnership.
The initiative, he underlined, is not directed against any state but seeks to advance shared interests and common security concerns.
Addressing developments in Turkey, the Cyprus Parliamentarian said the country has undergone a profound transformation over the past two decades, with its secular and Western-oriented outlook giving way to a blend of authoritarianism, Islamism and nationalism.
‘We cannot continue to pretend that Turkey is a stable and reliable partner,’ he stated, adding that this shift cannot be attributed solely to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, as it reflects broader structural changes that have reshaped the political system and state institutions.
Georgiades also referred to the strong domestic backing for the partnership in Cyprus, noting that both the political establishment and society at large clearly support cooperation with Israel and Greece, as well as the broader 3+1 scheme.
Citing a recent poll, Georgiades went on to say that seven out of ten Cypriots support cooperation between Israel, Greece, and Cyprus, while four out of ten consider Israel the country’s leading security partner, with the United States ranking second.
The meeting was attended by Knesset members Ohad Tal and Alon Schuster, co-chairs of the Knesset’s Eastern Mediterranean Group, which oversees relations with Cyprus and Greece and promotes the 3+1 framework; US Congressmen Brad Schneider and Randy Fine; Greece’s representative to the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, MP Demetris Kairidis; Greg Roman, Chief Executive Officer of the Middle East Forum; and geopolitical experts from the four countries.