Greece and Israel signed a strategic energy agreement further upgrading their bilateral economic and political relations amid escalating uncertainty in the Eastern Mediterranean and Turkish claims and aspirations in the region.

Greece and Israel have developed, in cooperation with Cyprus, a common front of action in the South-East Mediterranean region and the developments both around the development of new deposits and their transport routes to Europe, as well as electrical interconnections, on the basis of tripartite agreements.

Thus, the Intergovernmental Agreement signed by Greece and Israel on Monday, the first of its kind on energy issues, is characterized as important landmark in the wider strategic cooperation in the Eastern Mediterranean.

It describes, among other things:

  • cooperation on strategic infrastructure issues,
  • cyber security,
  • the development and regulation of renewable energy sources and
  • the promotion of advanced technologies in the energy sector.

The agreement, which initially valid for five yearsexpresses the common commitment to its promotion regional energy security, extending geopolitical stability and providing incentives for economic prosperity.

According to Kathimerini, within the framework of the agreement, a working group will be established to deepen ties and implement the provisions of the agreement in practice.

The agreement was signed on Monday in Athens by the Minister of Environment and Energy Theodore Skylakakis and the Israeli Minister of Energy and Infrastructure Eli Cohen.

Israel and Greece are thus establishing a strong and long-term partnership, including the promotion of joint projects and activities in recent years, such as the Great Sea Interconnector, a strategic project that will connect the electricity grids of Israel and Cyprus to the central European grid, allowing thus integrating Israel into the European electricity market, while strengthening the resilience of its electricity system.