‘Concrete developments’ on Cyprus-US relationship expected soon

“Concrete developments” related to the development of relations between Cyprus and the United States are expected very soon, President Nikos Christodoulides said on Saturday.

Speaking to Greek newspaper Ta Nea, he said the forthcoming developments will “institutionalise this cooperation of ours … in matters of defence and security”.

He added that in addition to those two fields, the governments of the two countries will continue to cooperate to deal with corruption, and that as such, he had requested that an FBI team travel to Cyprus with the aim of bringing cases of corruption before court.

He then spoke on matters related to commercial and economic relations between the countries, saying he had discussed “possible investments, especially in the field of energy” with US President Joe Biden at the White House.

“I am not only referring to natural gas, where [American companies] Chevron and Exxon are investing, but also on the issue of the electrical interconnector connecting Greece and Cyprus and the issue of renewable energy sources,” he said.

Evaluating his meeting with Biden as a whole, he said he had reached “the general conclusion that our cooperation with the US now goes beyond political issues and touches all other areas”.

“In this context, we must expect developments in various issues, including Cyprus’ entry into the visa waiver programme, but also the issue of major American investments in major government projects in Cyprus,” he said.

Asked what the meeting with Biden means for Cyprus’ global alignment, he said he was a “true believer in an approach that, especially for a small state like the Republic of Cyprus, and indeed one that is under occupation, approaches characterised as ‘neutral’ are not affective, and do not allow us to achieve strategic goals.”

“Indeed, the Republic of Cyprus has a clear orientation. It could not have been otherwise,” he said.

He went on to say that Cyprus “must take into account the fact that we are taking decisions in an anarchic legal system, and what determines states’ decisions in this environment is how they can best serve their interests.”

With this in mind, he said Cyprus has “proven with actions and not words the role we can play in a region of particular geostrategic importance”.

“This role must not only be maintained but clearly strengthened further … We do not rule out anyone, not even cooperation with Turkey after the Cyprus problem is resolved. As we have good relations with all our neighbouring states, our expectation would be to have excellent relations with Turkey as well,” he said.

At Wednesday’s meeting between Christodoulides and Biden at the White House, Biden had insisted that he “remains optimistic about the possibility that a reunited Cyprus under a bizonal, bicommunal federation is possible.”

In response, Christodoulides had told him, ““I count on your support, and the support of the US, in our efforts to resume negotiations” to resolve the Cyprus problem on the basis of a bizonal, bicommunal, federal solution.

He also said it was a “great honour” to be invited to the White House and added that Cyprus is “truly a strategic partner” of the US.

Relations between Cyprus and the US, he said, are now at a “historical high” and he highlighted the two countries’ close cooperation on the matters of “defence and security, energy, law enforcement, technology, and innovation”.

Christodoulides went on to speak of the “untapped potential” in relations between the two countries and the “clear and strong political will from both countries” to further enhance their relations and deepen their cooperation.