The European Union will invest $736 million for the construction of an undersea electricity cable linking the power grids of “Israel”, Cyprus and Greece.
 
Cypriot Energy Minister Natasa Pilides said on Thursday that the funding for the 2,000-megawatt cable is Cyprus’ largest-ever investment, and the money will allow crews to begin work on the segment connecting Cyprus with the Greek island of Crete, whose total cost is estimated at $1.8 billion.
 
Pilides added that aside from the project’s geopolitical ramifications, it will ensure Cyprus’ energy security and allow it to transition to a green economy.
 
The move toward this electricity cable link seems to have supplanted plans for a gas pipelines connection between the three countries, called the East Med pipeline, which would have sent gas from deposits off Cyprus and Egypt to Europe through Greece. Support for the pipeline has now waned, and although studies on its feasibility were still ongoing, there are other options to get gas to markets.

Among the more likely options is to convey Cypriot gas to Egyptian processing plants where it would be liquefied for export by ship.

Israeli-Greek relations strategic, value-based: Israeli FM

Greek-Israeli bilateral relations are a strategic partnership built on shared values, Israeli occupation Foreign Minister Yair Lapid told Tuesday Greek Ekathimerini newspaper in an exclusive interview.

"The bilateral relationship between Israel and Greece is not only a multifaceted strategic partnership, as demonstrated by our ties in security and energy," Lapid said. 

"An improvement of relations between Israel and any country is never at the expense of our relations with other countries, and we see our ties with Greece as strategic," Lapid reiterated.

Lapid also highlighted that the existing partnership was on the agenda of a trilateral summit between the occupation, Athens, and Nicosia in December.

Israeli occupation Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, and Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades had met in occupied Al-Quds on December 7. The three discussed enhancing relations on common regional "threats," which they said included the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, and "terrorism."