President Reuven Rivlin landed today (Tuesday, 12 February 2019), in Larnaca, capital of Cyprus, and began his state visit, at the invitation of President Nicos Anastasiades. The visit began with an official welcoming ceremony at the Presidential Palace, during which the two national anthems were played and the president reviewed an honor guard. The two presidents met in private, after which there was a bilateral meeting with delegations from both sides.

 “I know that this meeting may be a little tense, after we won the Eurovision,” said the president with a smile, adding “I hope that the contest we host in Tel Aviv will give us an opportunity to meet again soon.”

At the end of their meeting, the two presidents gave remarks to the press. “The relations between our two countries have never been better,” said President Rivlin, noting the range of cooperation including in the fields of intelligence, security and the joint fight against terrorism, as a result of which “Cyprus, Israel and the Middle East are safer. Now we looking forward to share the fruits of growth and prosperity.” The president also mentioned the economic ties between the countries, with over $650m in commerce each year, as well as 250,000 Israeli tourists visiting Cyprus.

“We recently signed a trilateral agreement together with Greece,” continued the president. “We are three countries, but we aim to form a shared economy based on the flow of energy, information and electricity. Our prime focus right now is on developing the eastern Mediterranean pipeline. This could be one of the great underwater projects in the world. Green and clean energy together with information technology are not only an urgent need for us all they are also an opportunity. They are the future. Cyprus and Israel can, and must, partner around shared interest and true friendship.”

The president also noted that “This bilateral strategic partnership is now a trilateral one, together with Greece, and it can be expanded in to a larger partnership. Energy cooperation with parties in the eastern Mediterranean can make a great difference for the people of Cyprus, Israel, Greece, Italy, Egypt, Jordan and the Palestinian Authority. We look forward to making progress in all these areas of cooperation for the security and prosperity of our two nations and for the stability of the Mediterranean.”

President Nicos Anastasiades of Cyprus welcomed President Rivlin, saying “your visit is an important milestone in the relations between our countries. During our meeting, we exchanged ideas not only on the warm relations we already have but also on ways to deepen them. Our peoples have an ancient and strong bond. After the Holocaust, the Cypriot people took in many survivors of that terrible tragedy, and many babies were born here. Today, we are in a new era of partnership based on our shared values. Together, we will deepen our cooperation in a range of fields – security, intelligence, energy and many more. Israel is an important strategic partner for us and an important power in regional security. We will continue to  deepen relations facing the various emerging challenges as well as the opportunities they present.”

The visit will continue with a state luncheon hosted in honor of President Rivlin, after which he will participate in a ceremony marking 70 years since the closure of the detention camps for Jewish immigrants on the island. The ceremony will be held at the monument to the immigrants at the British Military Hospital in Nicosia.