by Dr. George N. Tzogopoulos
[D]espite progress among the governments and the generally positive climate, warning signs of anti-Semitism in Greece underline the need for grassroots action to combine political achievements with wide public support.
Benjamin Netanyahu, Nicos Anastasiades,
and Alexis Tsipras at fourth
Cyprus-Greece-Israel summit, photo via
Twitter account of Alexis Tsipras
BESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 861, June 10, 2018
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: Cyprus, Greece, and
Israel are steadily building a democratic geopolitical bloc in the
Eastern Mediterranean. They are exploring ways to collaborate in fields
ranging from energy to communication technology and defense.
Greek-American and American-Jewish communities are exploiting the
momentum to further boost the developing “triangle” and encourage US
support. However, despite progress among the governments and the
generally positive climate, warning signs of anti-Semitism in Greece
underline the need for grassroots action to combine political
achievements with wide public support.
The fourth Cyprus-Greece-Israel tripartite summit,
which took place in Nicosia on May 8, 2018, made plain the
determination of the three countries to deepen their cooperation. Nicos
Anastasiades, Alexis Tsipras, and Benjamin Netanyahu discussed
new fields of interest, including public security, cinema
co-production, maritime pollution, telecommunications, and the reduction
of data roaming costs. They agreed that the fifth trilateral summit
will take place within the year in Beersheba, a place described by Netanyahu as “cyber city.” At that event, the parties plan to advance their dialogue on communication technologies.
At present, the countries are emphasizing their collaboration at the military level. Symbolically, Greek fighter planes participated in an IAF aerial show
to celebrate Israel and the IDF’s 70th Independence Day. Also, the
Chief of the Hellenic Army General Staff, Lt. Gen. Alkiviadis Stefanis, visited Israel at the invitation of Maj. Gen. Yaacov Barak, the IDF’s Ground Forces Commander, who had already visited Greece in January. According to media reports, the two sides are discussing potential joint actions against new threats as well as exchange programs. Staff talks involving representatives of the armed forces of Cyprus, Greece, and Israel took place in Israel on May 9.
Energy remains at the center of attention. Cyprus
and Israel currently disagree on the division of the Aphrodite
reservoir, and this disagreement could lead to international arbitration. Το avoid such a scenario, Nicosia and Jerusalem are engaging in a “transparent and productive dialogue,”
as Israeli Ambassador to Cyprus Shmuel Revel put it to the Cyprus News
Agency. Cypriot Energy Minister Yiorgos Lakkotrypis said companies
should first attempt to reach settlements on gas quantities on their own, but this process has not yet begun.
This issue is not expected to be easily solved.
Lakkotrypis sees it as “one of the most important differences” between
Cyprus and Israel. His Israeli counterpart Yuval Steinitz declares, “Israel cannot give up, not even as a gesture of friendship, on its territories or its natural resources.”
The lack of a sharing formula on the Aphrodite gas
field does not prevent Cyprus, Israel, and Greece from examining the
construction of an EastMed pipeline. Following the tripartite Nicosia
summit, the Israeli ambassador to Greece, Irit Ben-Abba, spoke about a fast rhythm for the potential realization of this “adventurous project.”
An EastMed pipeline would cost more than a
pipeline connecting Israel to Turkey, but would enhance security in the
Eastern Mediterranean. That is why it is anathema to Ankara. Following
the Nicosia meeting, the Turkish-Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci said EastMed might not function as a route to peace and advocated for the transportation of gas resources from the Levantine Basin to Europe via Turkey.
Comments like these show Ankara’s unease with the
evolving cooperation among Cyprus, Greece, and Israel. The creation of a
democratic bloc in the Eastern Mediterranean does not serve Turkish
President’s Erdoğan’s neo-Ottoman aspirations – indeed, it might disrupt
them.
Executive director of the Hellenic American Leadership Council (HALC) Endy Zemenides said in an interview
that his organization and the American Jewish Community (AJC) were
coordinating an advocacy campaign in Washington to strengthen the
Cyprus-Greece-Israel triangle with US support. A restriction on F-35 jet
sales to Turkey and the end of the Cyprus Arms Embargo Act are among
the goals. In May 2018 the fifth anniversary of the Congressional
Hellenic-Israel Alliance was also celebrated
in the US. The more Ankara’s tactics are exposed by Cyprus, Israel, and
Greece, the more the international community becomes aware of Erdoğan’s
motivations.
The fourth Cyprus-Greece-Israel tripartite summit
took place on the same day US President Donald Trump made his Iran
speech. This led both Cyprus and Greece to take a public position on how
they view Israel’s sensitivity towards the Iranian threat – despite
their need to align their policies with that of the EU. President
Anastasiades told i24NEWS
that he “urged Iran to pursue good relations with all of their
neighbors and to respect the principle of non-interference.” Prime
Minister Tsipras underlined that he shared Prime Minister’s Netanyahu’s concern
but advocated for the preservation of the Iran nuclear deal. Greek
companies, like Hellenic Petroleum, that are importing oil from Iran are
reportedly coming up with alternative plans.
Notwithstanding the strong momentum and high level
of political support for the strengthening of the Cyprus-Greece-Israel
geopolitical alliance in the Eastern Mediterranean, old stereotypes and
prejudices are undermining wider acceptance. Worryingly, signs of
anti-Semitism are resurfacing, at least in Greece. Α Greek cartoonist
recently compared the situation in the Gaza Strip with the Holocaust
and drew a parallel between Israeli policies and Nazi practices. Both
the Central Israel Council of Greece and the Embassy of Israel criticized the comparison.
However, the Greek blogosphere teems with articles calling the
“targeting” of the cartoonist unfair and suggesting he was correct in
condemning Israel’s behavior towards the Palestinians.
Also, at the beginning of May, a Jewish cemetery in a southwestern suburb of Athens was vandalized and marble headstones damaged. The Central Board of Jewish Communities in Greece expressed its condemnation of this incident and a silent protest
was organized. Moreover, Islamic hatred of Jews has appeared in Greece.
In Xanthi, a city in northeastern Greece, the self-proclaimed Mufti
Ahmet Mete misses no opportunity to slander the Jews in his preaching,
though he was sentenced to eight months imprisonment for saying that Hitler was right to turn the Jews into soap.
Condemnations and protests are not sufficient to
eradicate anti-Semitism. Recent warning signals indicate the need for
better education and more accurate and open-minded media coverage. This
is the only way the arguments of the political elites will receive
public support in the long term.
BESA Center Perspectives Papers are published through the generosity of the Greg Rosshandler Family
Source: https://besacenter.org/perspectives-papers/cyprus-greece-israel-relations/
Follow Middle East and Terrorism on Twitter
Copyright - Original materials copyright (c) by the authors.
No comments:
Post a Comment