Cyprus

Cyprus Defense Minister Savvas Angelides briefed his EU counterparts on Tuesday on Turkey's ongoing activities in the Republic of Cyprus' exclusive economic zone (EEZ), stressing the need for an EU naval presence in the Eastern Mediterranean region.

Last summer's change of government played a decisive role in improving Greece's ranking on the global competitiveness chart by nine positions compared with 2019, according to the Swiss-based Institute for Management Development (IMD).

Greece and Israel pledged on Tuesday to work toward a resumption of bilateral tourism in August if coronavirus precautions permit and discussed shared concerns over Turkey's energy exploration in the eastern Mediterranean.

Israel will allow international flights to resume on August 1, with Greece and Cyprus being the first destinations to be given a green light, the country's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced on Tuesday afternoon, following a meeting with Greek counterpart Kyriakos Mitsotakis in Jerusalem.

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis visited Israel on Tuesday in a show of confidence in the countries' anti-coronavirus measures which Athens hopes can be translated into a resumption of tourism.

With Greece, Israel and Cyprus partnered up on energy projects in the eastern Mediterranean, Mitsotakis also warned against exploration efforts by "neighbourhood bully" Turkey.

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis is traveling to Israel today on his first foreign visit since the coronavirus outbreak. The message is clear, and it is being sent out in several directions. After deepening their mutually beneficial relationship (which is not aimed at any third country) for a decade, Greece and Israel are pushing ties to a new level.

Josep Borrell, the European Union's foreign policy chief, has expressed the bloc's concern over the escalation of tension in the Eastern Mediterranean.
Asked during a press conference after the EU's foreign affairs council on Monday over Turkey's activity in the area, Borrell said that "the situation in the Eastern Mediterranean is becoming worse."

The European Commission has rejected allegations that its officials tried to cover up the failure by Croatia's government to supervise its border police, after they were repeatedly accused of abusing migrants and refugees on the EU's external borders.

The Turkish army's training and guidance contributed "very significantly" to the recent military success of Libya's U.N.-backed Government of National Accord (GNA), Turkey's defense minister has said.

The Cyprus government will be reissuing a call for the expression of interest by bidders who have acquired the necessary equipment needed for rapid Covid-19 tests, so that incoming tourists won't need to spend a night in quarantine until labs check their sample for the virus.