On Wednesday, October 23, 2024, the First Strategic Dialogue between Cyprus and the USA took place at the Presidential Palace in Nicosia. 

The opening of the Strategic Dialogue was attended by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Konstantinos Kombos, who in his opening speech highlighted the importance of establishing a Strategic Dialogue between Cyprus and the USA. He also underlined the prospects that are created for strengthening and expanding the cooperation between the two countries. He also referred to the common values ​​that govern Cyprus-US relations, emphasizing the common will of the two countries to work for the peace, stability, and prosperity of the wider region of the Eastern Mediterranean and Middle East. 

The Government of the United States of America was represented by the Assistant Secretary of State for European and Euro-Asian Affairs, Mr. James O’Brien. The head of the Cypriot delegation during the day-long consultations was the Director General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Andreas S. Kakouris. 

The work of the first Strategic Dialogue focused on the thematic sections “International and Regional Cooperation,” “Security, Crisis Management, and Law Enforcement,” “Education/links between the two peoples,” and “Energy, Trade, Research, and Technology.” 

On the sidelines of the work of the Strategic Dialogue, the Deputy Minister of Research, Innovation, and Digital Policy, Mr. Nikodimos Damianou, signed, on behalf of the Republic of Cyprus, the Artemis Accords concerning the peaceful exploration and exploitation of space.

At the end of the First Strategic Dialogue, a Joint Communiqué between Cyprus and the US was issued.

In the field of defense, the two states reaffirmed the importance of deepening their partnership in the field of security and defense, in line with the objectives of the Republic of Cyprus-US Bilateral Defense Cooperation Roadmap 2024-2029, signed on September 9, 2024, to enhance cooperation on humanitarian disasters, international military training and joint training exercises, information sharing, interoperability, joint recovery operations, and capacity building.

With information from: PIO

Also read: USA – Republic of Cyprus | Joint statement on the signing of a Road Map with defense cooperation for the period 2024 – 2029 – Photos