Israel’s closest friends is Cyprus, the country’s president said Sunday Issak Hertzong Welcoming the Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides.
“Welcoming President Christodoulides, the Israeli president expressed gratitude to the Cypriot government for the assistance of the Republic of Cyprus in the efforts to extinguish recent fires in Israel,” the Deputy Deputy Chief of the Republican.
He adds that “he also expressed assessment to the President of the Republic, after being attacked at Ben Gourion Airport, however, he made his visit to the country.”
Neighbors, friends, strategic partners. A forward looking discussion with my good friend President @Isaac_Herzog on adressing challenges and creating opportunities for our neighborhood. Cyprus is a reliable, stable, trustworthy partner committed to regional cooperation, 🇨🇾🇮🇱 pic.twitter.com/w44wMIfwJM
— NikosChristodoulides (@Christodulides) May 4, 2025
President Hertzog “referred to the attacks taken by Israel and in the current situation in the country and in the region, stressing the need for an international effort on the humanitarian issue of Hamas hostage liberation.” He also congratulated President Christodoulides for the EU Council’s assumption in Cyprus in the first half of 2026.
He also stressed that ”Cyprus is one of Israel’s closest friends“, Noting that between the two countries there are more than 110 flights a week.
For his part, the Cypriot president noted that both on the issue of fires and other challenges only through regional cooperation can these challenges be addressed.
Nikos Christodoulides added that Cyprus is “a credible and predictable neighbor who works for more cooperation with other states, but also for the further exploitation of the enormous potential of the region for the benefit of the peoples and states of the Middle East and the wider eastern Mediterranean”.
He also pointed out that despite disagreements and different political approaches, through dialogue alone, the issues we have before us can be resolved, he says.
“He also expressed his deep emotion from meeting with hostage families earlier today, noting that Cypriots have also experienced similar situations.”
As Nikos Christodoulides said, “it is a purely humanitarian issue, it is not a political issue or geopolitical. I want to reiterate our clear position that all hostages must immediately be released and in this effort Cyprus will do whatever it takes to return more hostages. “
“Referring to Cyprus -Israel bilateral relations, the President of Cyprus described them as excellent, adding, however, that they can always be done even more in areas such as energy, trade, tourism.”
Concerning the priorities of the EU Council’s presidency from Cyprus, Nikos Christodoulides said that one of the key priorities is to bring the EU closer to the region and highlighting its importance, stressing that the Republic of Cyprus is the ambassador of the EU.
Expanded conversations between the two delegations followed during which, among other things, the bilateral relations, the energy, the priorities of the forthcoming Cypriot Presidency in the EU, the developments in the Cyprus issue and the situation in the Middle East.