In what has been described as a “historic moment,” Cyprus and the United States declared on Monday that they will begin strategic dialogue to strengthen bilateral cooperation in a variety of areas, including security and investment.
The development was announced during a meeting in Washington, DC between Cyprus’ Foreign Minister, Constantinos Kombos and US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken.
Kombos described it as “a historic moment because the Republic of Cyprus enters a category of states with which the US wants to have an institutionalised dialogue with. A dialogue which is intensive and is geared towards achieving specific results.”
It is through this lens that five decades of Cyprus’ occupation by Turkey should be viewed, he added. “On that, we count on the support of the United States,” Kombos said.
According to Cyprus Mail, the strategic dialogue involves Nicosia and Washington participating in high-level meetings twice a year on issues addressing six pillars: humanitarian crisis management; terrorism and security; energy; trade and investment; education, and cultural matters.
Senior officials from both nations’ foreign ministries are scheduled to meet in Nicosia in September for the first round.
Source: Cyprus Mail
