PM to make historic visit to Cyprus

Netanyahu will make the 30-minute flight later this week, the first time an Israeli prime minister has ever visited the island.

By HERB KEINON
Netanyahu 311 (photo credit: Avi Ohayon/GPO)
Netanyahu 311
(photo credit: Avi Ohayon/GPO)
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu will travel to Cyprus Thursday for a one-day visit – the first time an Israeli prime minister has ever visited the island, just a 30-minute flight from Tel Aviv.
Netanyahu’s trip shows the degree to which relations with Cyprus, which until four years ago was considered among the most hostile countries to Israel in Europe, have dramatically improved.
Now, one diplomatic official said, Cyprus is seen as an important regional partner for Israel, and together with Greece, Romania and Bulgaria, it is viewed as a part of a regional alliance serving to counterbalance Turkey. As was the case with Greece, Israel’s ties with Cyprus began to blossom as Jerusalem’s relationship with Turkey deteriorated over the last four years.
Jerusalem sees Cyprus – geographically the closest European country to Israel – as a possible bridge to Europe, especially in regard to energy issues.
Energy, and possible cooperation on developing natural gas deposits in each country’s exclusive economic zones in the eastern Mediterranean, is expected to be among Netanyahu’s main topics of discussion during his visit.
One idea on the agenda is the possibility of building a gas pipeline to Cyprus, from which the gas could then be exported elsewhere in Europe. The Delek energy company is interested in a partnership with Cyprus to build a facility where gas from both countries could be processed and sent farther abroad.
This week Cyprus opened its second licensing round for companies interested in searching for gas in its exclusive economic zone. The US Noble Energy company made a huge natural gas find after being the only company to bid for the first tender some five years ago.
“There are many ways we can cooperate on the gas issue in a mutually beneficial manner,” one diplomatic official said.
Cyprus’s interest in developing its off-shore natural gas deposits has created a great deal of tension with Turkey.
Last summer, Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu warned of a “necessary response” if Cyprus went ahead with its development plans.
Turkey, which has occupied northern Cyprus since 1974, claims Cyprus does not have the right to exploit the island’s natural resources and that it cannot ignore the Turkish-Cypriot rights to those resources.
While tense ties with Turkey unquestionably have had much to do with the improvement of Israeli-Cypriot ties, one Israeli official said there were now enough “positive reasons” for the countries to cooperate “without bringing in a third party as the catalyst.”
Cyprus played a key role last year in Israel’s efforts to thwart a protest flotilla that wanted to set sail for Gaza, consistently refusing to let those ships set sail from its ports.
The European country also quickly sent a helicopter and plane to Israel in December 2010 to help fight the Carmel Forest fire. Last July, Israel reciprocated by dispatching 10 generators to the island to relieve an electricity shortage caused when confiscated Iranian armaments at a navy base exploded and knocked out one of the country’s main power stations.
Netanyahu’s visit comes just under a year after Cypriot President Dimitris Christofias came to Israel, in the first visit by a Cypriot head of state in 11 years.