Category: General

Chairman of the EU Military Commission (EUMC), General Robert Brieger who pays an official visit to Cyprus (April 24-26), at the invitation of the Chief of the National Guard, Lieutenant General Georgios Tsitsikostas held meetings with the political and military leadership. According to a communiqué by the National Guard, on Thursday, April 25, 2024, the official welcoming ceremony of the EUMC Chairman took place at the Headquarters of the National Guard followed by a private meeting with the Chief Tsitsikostas. EUMC Chairman's visit to the Headquarters of the National Guard also included a briefing on the mission and operational capabilities of the National Guard, as well as extended talks regarding current issues related to the Common Security and Defense Policy of the European Union, such as the development of military capabilities of rapid response and ongoing military operations. Brieger and Tsitsikostas also exchanged views on broader security issues such as developments in the Eastern Mediterranean, the Middle East and Ukraine. General Brieger's program also included a meeting with the Minister of Defense, Vassilis Palmas, while he was also received by the President of the Republic of Cyprus, Nikos Christodoulides, at the presence of National Guard Chief. Visits of operational interest include, among others, the "Evangelos Florakis" Naval Base and the Search and Rescue Coordination Centre, where the Chairman of the EUMC will be informed about their mission, work and capabilities. General Brieger also visited the Makedonitissa Military Cemetery, where he laid a wreath paying tribute to the memory of those fell for protecting the freedom of the Republic of Cyprus during 1974 Turkish invasion of the island. It is noted that Brieger's visit takes place 3 weeks before the Regular Meeting of the EU Military Committee in Brussels, at the level of Chiefs of Armed Forces of the 27 member states, in the context of which elections for new EUMC Chairman will take place. General Brieger completes his term in May 2025. As part of the preparations, Chief Tsitsikostas had personal or telephone contacts, exchanging views with all the candidates. Source: Cyprus News Agency

ISTANBUL: In a significant development regarding efforts to overturn the 2020 election, the Arizona grand jury indicted Wednesday several individuals, including prominent allies of former US President Donald Trump. The indictment, spanning 58 pages, outlines felony charges of conspiracy, fraud, and forgery against 18 individuals closely associated with Trump's campaign and administration. Among those indicted are former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, attorneys Rudy Giuliani and Boris Epshteyn, and several others identified by their roles and descriptions within the document. The indictment also identified Trump as "Unindicted Coconspirator 1." The charges stem from a scheme described in the indictment, aimed at preventing the lawful transfer of the presidency by keeping Trump "in office against the will of Arizona's voters." Key figures involved in the alleged conspiracy include Rudy Giuliani, who is described as having spread false claims of election fraud and pressured officials to change the election outcome. Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes, leading the investigation, emphasized the seriousness of the indictments, which also target 11 Republicans who falsely posed as Arizona's presidential electors despite US President Joe Biden's victory in the state. Notable among them are former Arizona GOP Chairwoman Kelli Ward and state senators Jake Hoffman and Anthony Kern. "These are serious indictments, but this is the first hurdle the state must pass in our constitutional criminal justice system. We intend to prove these crimes were committed beyond a reasonable doubt," Mayes noted. Mayes' investigation, part of a broader effort to address election subversion, has gained momentum in recent months. Witnesses, including individuals from Trump's national orbit, have been subpoenaed, contributing to the extensive probe. Despite political differences among the grand jurors, their proactive approach underscores the gravity of the charges and the determination to uphold the integrity of the electoral process. This indictment marks another significant legal development in the aftermath of the 2020 election, underscoring ongoing efforts to hold accountable those involved in attempts to undermine democratic norms and institutions. Source: Anadolu Agency

ANKARA: Two so-called senior members of the Daesh/ISIS terror group were caught in Operation Peace-Spring zone in northern Syria with the intelligence support of the Turkish National Intelligence Organization. The terrorist organization members, Ziyad Al-Hajji, code-named "Abu Bakir Al-Kurayshi," and Musa Muhammad Al-Habib, code-named "Abu Al-Baraa," were detained by local security forces affiliated with the Syrian National Army. Since 2016, Ankara has launched a trio of successful anti-terror operations across its border in northern Syria to prevent the formation of a terror corridor and enable the peaceful settlement of residents: Euphrates Shield (2016), Olive Branch (2018), and Peace Spring (2019). *Writing by Alperen Aktas Source: Anadolu Agency

In the scope of the current crisis in the Middle East and subsequent security and stability risks for the entire region, the tripartite inter-parliamentary cooperation of Cyprus, Greece, Israel, becomes even more essential and useful for exchanging views to address common challenges, Presidents of the Parliamentary Foreign Affairs Committees of the three countries stressed on Thursday. According to a House press release an online meeting took place today between Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Foreign and European Affairs Harris Georgiades, Chairwoman of the Standing Committee on National Defense and Foreign Affairs of the Hellenic Parliament Dora Bakoyannis and Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee Chairman Yuli-Yoel Edelstein. During the meeting, the added value of parliamentary diplomacy to serve the ultimate goal of ensuring regional peace and stability was also underlined. Harris Georgiades emphasized the importance of maintaining cooperation with the countries of the broader region and the revival in this context of the Abraham Accords. In this regard, he underlined the need for a more active role on the part of the European Union, as well as the importance of maintaining US engagement in the region. Georgiades also pointed out that the military path cannot be the only possible option for achieving a sustainable solution to the current crisis and emphasized the prominent role of diplomacy, including its parliamentary dimension, in building lasting peace and stability. Finally, the Presidents of the three Committees expressed the common will to hold a meeting to continue and further deepen the dialogue and cooperation between them and to promote aforementioned goals. Source: Cyprus News Agency

Member of the European Court of Auditors, Lefteris Christoforou, is holding a series of meetings with officials of the Cypriot Government and the country's institutions this week. According to a statement from his office, during his contacts, Christoforou will present and discuss, among other things, the recent special reports of the European Court of Auditors, the upcoming publications - especially those related to the EU's Recovery and Resilience Facility - and the challenges concerning the EU budget execution. On Tuesday, it said, Christoforou was received by the President of the Republic, Nikos Christodoulides, whom he briefed about the recent work of the European Court of Auditors. 'An interesting discussion was held', it said, on the results of the recent audits of the European Court of Auditors, especially on the EU's Recovery and Resilience Facility and the absorption of funds from the European co-financed funds. It notes that President Christodoulides emphasised the importance of the role of the European Court of Auditors in terms of monitoring the implementation of the recovery and resilience plans of the EU member states and expressed his satisfaction with Cyprus' particularly high rate of absorption in terms of the 2014-2020 European Structural and Investment Funds. The President of the Republic, it adds, took into account the risks identified by the auditors which result from the parallel implementation of the EU's recovery and resilience facility and the European funds for the period 2021-2027 that co-finance the cohesion policy (THALIA 2021- 2027). Christoforou also had sperate meetings with the Auditor General, Odysseas Michaelides, the Minister of Energy, Commerce and Industry, George Papanastasiou, the Commissioner for Agricultural Payments, Andreas Kyprianou, the Deputy Minister for European Affairs, Marilena Raouna, and Government Spokesman, Konstantinos Letymbiotis. Source: Cyprus News Agency

ANKARA: The US-led trilateral security partnership AUKUS could turn the Asia-Pacific region into a "nuclear minefield," a North Korean analyst has warned. The partnership between the United States, Australia, and the United Kingdom is part of Washington's efforts to expand and strengthen military blocs in the Asia-Pacific region, claimed Kang Jin Song, in an article carried in state media KCNA and Voice of Korea on Thursday. "The Asia-Pacific is turning into a theatre of muscle-flexing and a touch-and-go nuclear minefield, and the ensuing immediate and prospective security burden has been heavily placed on the regional and international community," wrote Kang. "Since its founding, it has been called a nuclear mine planted in the waters of the Asia-Pacific as 'the Anglo-Saxon nuclear submarine alliance' for seeking nuclear supremacy in the Asia-Pacific region by detouring the international nuclear non-proliferation system," he added. The British and Australian defense ministers and US defense secretary hav e recently said they were considering cooperation with Japan on AUKUS Pillar II advanced capability projects, part of the security agreement focusing on technology such as artificial intelligence (AI) and quantum computing. "The danger of Japan's participation in AUKUS is making the whole international community tense, not to mention the regional countries," said Kang. However, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said earlier this month that there was no plan to expand AUKUS beyond the three countries. AUKUS was formed on Sept. 15, 2021 as a trilateral security treaty for the Indo-Pacific region. It is primarily aimed at boosting deterrence against China, which the members say is becoming more assertive in the region. The three AUKUS allies, along with Canada and New Zealand, are also members of the 'Five Eyes' intelligence-sharing network. Source: Anadolu Agency

ISTANBUL: Trkiye's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Thursday received letters of credentials from the newly appointed ambassadors of seven countries. At the presidential complex in the capital Ankara, Erdogan welcomed Mauricio Arturo Bueso Chinchilla of Honduras, Martin Andjaba of Namibia, Arni Thor Sigurdsson of Iceland, Christelle Sohun of Mauritius, Santos Alvaro of Mozambique, Tapas Adhikari of Nepal, and Latsamy Keomany of Laos. After the new envoys' credentials were presented, souvenir photos were taken. Source: Anadolu Agency

In the scope of the current crisis in the Middle East and subsequent security and stability risks for the entire region, the tripartite inter-parliamentary cooperation of Cyprus, Greece, Israel, becomes even more essential and useful for exchanging views to address common challenges, Presidents of the Parliamentary Foreign Affairs Committees of the three countries stressed on Thursday. According to a House press release an online meeting took place today between Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Foreign and European Affairs Harris Georgiades, Chairwoman of the Standing Committee on National Defense and Foreign Affairs of the Hellenic Parliament Dora Bakoyannis and Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee Chairman Yuli-Yoel Edelstein. During the meeting, the added value of parliamentary diplomacy to serve the ultimate goal of ensuring regional peace and stability was also underlined. Harris Georgiades emphasized the importance of maintaining cooperation with the countries of the broader region and the revival in this context of the Abraham Accords. In this regard, he underlined the need for a more active role on the part of the European Union, as well as the importance of maintaining US engagement in the region. Georgiades also pointed out that the military path cannot be the only possible option for achieving a sustainable solution to the current crisis and emphasized the prominent role of diplomacy, including its parliamentary dimension, in building lasting peace and stability. Finally, the Presidents of the three Committees expressed the common will to hold a meeting to continue and further deepen the dialogue and cooperation between them and to promote aforementioned goals. Source: Cyprus News Agency

Member of the European Court of Auditors, Lefteris Christoforou, is holding a series of meetings with officials of the Cypriot Government and the country's institutions this week. According to a statement from his office, during his contacts, Christoforou will present and discuss, among other things, the recent special reports of the European Court of Auditors, the upcoming publications - especially those related to the EU's Recovery and Resilience Facility - and the challenges concerning the EU budget execution. On Tuesday, it said, Christoforou was received by the President of the Republic, Nikos Christodoulides, whom he briefed about the recent work of the European Court of Auditors. 'An interesting discussion was held', it said, on the results of the recent audits of the European Court of Auditors, especially on the EU's Recovery and Resilience Facility and the absorption of funds from the European co-financed funds. It notes that President Christodoulides emphasised the importance of the role of the European Court of Auditors in terms of monitoring the implementation of the recovery and resilience plans of the EU member states and expressed his satisfaction with Cyprus' particularly high rate of absorption in terms of the 2014-2020 European Structural and Investment Funds. The President of the Republic, it adds, took into account the risks identified by the auditors which result from the parallel implementation of the EU's recovery and resilience facility and the European funds for the period 2021-2027 that co-finance the cohesion policy (THALIA 2021- 2027). Christoforou also had sperate meetings with the Auditor General, Odysseas Michaelides, the Minister of Energy, Commerce and Industry, George Papanastasiou, the Commissioner for Agricultural Payments, Andreas Kyprianou, the Deputy Minister for European Affairs, Marilena Raouna, and Government Spokesman, Konstantinos Letymbiotis. Source: Cyprus News Agency