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Netanyahu in Cyprus to Strengthen Ties to Greece following Tsipras Visit to Israel

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamín Netanyahu is in Cyprus today to meet with Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades. It the third Netanyahu-Tsipras meeting in two months (the last was yesterday, in Jerusalem) and is meant to highlight the improving ties between the two small Mediterranean nations that are only a hop, skip and a jump away, as their back to back meetings indicate.

“Our cooperation with Greece and Cyprus stands on its own,” Netanyahu said, in a formal statement, and addressing himself to the neighborhood behemoth and Green rival, Turkey. “While we believe that it should have happened some time ago, we are pleased by the current progress. It does not depend on our efforts to normalize our relations with Turkey. We are trying to do this. I do not know if we will succeed but I think that we will continue our efforts to do so. We must ensure that Israel’s interests are upheld. Turkey and Israel have had excellent relations in previous years. We did not want to see them deteriorate and we did not cause this deterioration in relations. We will welcome any change in policy.”

“We are two ancient peoples. You were standing outside the window, and I showed him the, showed Prime Minister Tsipras the Old City of Jerusalem, and I said, ‘This is our Acropolis’. So, the Acropolis and the City of David are the two foundations of much of our modern civilization, and while both Greeks and Jews can justifiably take pride in our rich, ancient heritage, we share a common desire to embrace the future. We want to seize the scientific and technological promise of the 21st century.”

Not everyone is thrilled by the progress. Or by what Netanyahu cagilly referred to the “change in policy.”
Senior Palestinian statesman Nabil Sha’ath published an OpEd entitled “Will Greece Betray the Palestinians?” in the Israeli daily Haaretz, in which he asked “For 70 years, Greece and Palestine have been close friends and allies. Will short-term economic interests between Greece and Israel lead Greece’s leaders to abandon us?”