Paphos, Cyprus. President Nikos Christodoulides and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Monday visited the Greek frigate Kimon, stationed off Cyprus since last week following a drone strike on the island.
Visit follows tripartite meeting in Paphos
The visit took place after a tripartite meeting involving Christodoulides, Mitsotakis and French President Emmanuel Macron at the Andreas Papandreou airbase in Paphos.
Statements aboard the Kimon
While aboard the ship, Christodoulides told Mitsotakis that “you are writing history”, and Mitsotakis replied that “it is our duty”.
Greek deployments near Cyprus
Mitsotakis referred to the Kimon as the “pride of the Greek fleet”, echoing remarks he made during a speech to the Greek parliament last week. Greece has also stationed a second frigate, the Psara, off Cyprus’ coast, and four Greek F-16 fighter jets have been located in Paphos for a week.
French naval presence in the eastern Mediterranean
Macron was due to visit the French aircraft carrier the Charles de Gaulle, which he deployed to the eastern Mediterranean following last week’s drone strike on Cyprus. France also deployed the frigate Languedoc to the island.
How do you assess the significance of the Greek and French military deployments near Cyprus?
