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US decree allows military sales to Cyprus

Cyprus on Thursday hailed a US memorandum signed by President Joe Biden that allows military sales, including arms, to the island as a milestone affirming recognition of the island as a pillar of stability in the East Mediterranean region which has been fraught with conflict.

The memorandum follows a meeting of Biden with Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides last week.

So far there is no official reaction by Turkey that illegally occupies the north part of the island, but Turkish press criticized the memorandum as “ridiculous”.

US President Joe Biden boosted security ties with Cyprus on Wednesday by issuing a memorandum that makes the island eligible to receive American defense articles, military sales and training, reuters reported.

Cyprus has over the years played a key role in evacuating people out of conflict zones and established a maritime corridor for aid to war-ravaged Gaza last year.

“This [memorandum] is a clear recognition of the Republic of Cyprus as a pillar of stability and security in the Eastern Mediterranean, with the potential to further contribute to peace and the management of humanitarian challenges,” the Cypriot presidency said in a statement.

Cyprus was close to Russia for decades, but there has been a marked shift in allegiances in recent years.

For many in Cyprus, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has drawn parallels to Turkey’s invasion of Cyprus in 1974, and Cyprus, an EU member-state, has followed its peers in adopting sanctions on Moscow. It is now getting FBI expertise in countering illicit finance.

Access to the US programs would enable greater interoperability to respond to regional humanitarian crises, counter malign influence, and combat terrorism and transnational organized crime, the US Embassy in Nicosia said.

Deepening US-Cyprus relations are closely followed by Turkey, which in September criticized the signing of a roadmap to boost defense cooperation between the United States and Cyprus, Reuters concluded.

PS It should be recalled that President-elect Donald Trump who officially assumes office next week, has described Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan as his “friend.”

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