Nicos Anastasiades

U.S. Vice President Joe Biden has reportedly called Greek Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades to ask if he wants him to convey any messages to Ankara ahead of his visit three-day visit to Turkey.

Three weeks before a Greek-Turkish summit in Athens, Turkey’s Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu accused Greece and Cyprus on Tuesday of trying to “frighten” his country by signing an agreement with Egypt.

An agreement reached between Baghdad and Arbil is a guarantee of stability for the country and the region, said Turkish Energy Minister Taner Yıldız at a press conference in the northwestern Turkish province of Kocaeli.

Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades is facing surgery to repair a heart valve, an official said Wednesday.

Government spokesman Nicos Christodoulides said Anastasiades will undergo mitral valve surgery “very soon.”

Christodoulides said doctors spotted the problem while Anastasiades was undergoing a routine health check.

I was planning to write a follow up to the latest article I wrote about Turkish-Greek cultural cooperation, which I learned had been translated and published on a number of Greek websites. However, the recent cool winds blowing in the Mediterranean changed the focus of this article.

Greece, Cyprus and Israel might hold a tripartite summit soon, following the talks between the Greek, Cypriot and Egyptian leaders in Cairo on Saturday.

The absence of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan during the last few days changed the news coverage in Turkey. Major political issues were temporarily put on the back burner. Admittedly the row over the cost of the White Palace continued without respite, but the Turks chose to project social issues and human stories rather than high politics.

Greek Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades on Nov. 8 accused Turkey of "provocative actions" that he said are hindering the island’s peace talks and compromising security in the eastern Mediterranean.

Greece, Cyprus and Egypt will step up energy cooperation, the leaders of the three countries agreed in Cairo on Saturday in their first ever tripartite talks.

Greece called on Turkey Friday to stop provoking Cyprus as it seeks to develop hydrocarbon reserves within its exclusive economic zone (EEZ), while Nicosia repeated that any gains will only be shared with Turkish Cypriots after the conclusion of a reunification settlement.