Τhe first Strategic Dialogue of Cyprus and the US commenced on Wednesday in Nicosia, with Foreign Minister Constantinos Kombos highlighting in his opening remarks the emerging strategic partnership between the two countries in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Middle East, while stressing that there are tremendous opportunities to take this bilateral relation to the next level.

In his statements at the Presidential Palace with the US Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs, responsible for European and Euro-Asian issues, James O'Brien, the Cypriot Foreign Minister said that this is a very important moment in the bilateral relation and a joint accomplishment of the cooperation, interaction and coordinated action on the basis of a mutually beneficial agenda.

On his part, James O'Brien spoke of an "historic occasion" and said that the commitment of both their teams to make this possible would measure their success by whether their people feel safer and more prosperous, and whether the societies can promote their values.

Kombos said that "this day marks a joint commitment towards a closer and stronger cooperation between our two countries, fostering a more secure, stable and prosperous region."

Ηe added that the deepening of the bilateral relations has been a  top priority since the President of the Republic, Nikos Christodoulides, assumed office.

Kombos said that the consultations on Wednesday would include a range of areas, security, defense, crisis management, law enforcement, energy, education, cultural trade and invest.

"We believe that there are tremendous opportunities to take our bilateral relation to the next level and it's up to us to turn these opportunities into concrete achievements and there are very many reasons why we should be pursuing this," he noted.

He spoke of the joint commitment,  shared values  in relation to democracy, the rule of law and human rights, in times during which the international order is being challenged, i.e in Ukraine, "where aggression and revisionism are resurfacing as an option, the unwavering commitment to the core values underpinning the international community are of paramount importance in this context".

He also underlined the continued commitment of the US to a principled position on sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of Cyprus.

Kombos went on to say that in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Middle East, the partnership is based on their commitment to peace, security, stability and cooperation in the region where things are volatile and complex.

"And in this context, Cyprus is a point of reference in terms of stability", he noted referring to the Cyprus Maritime Corridor initiative, the ESTIA evacuation plan as well as to the numerous initiatives of trilateral cooperation in the Mediterranean and the region in general.

Cyprus' Minister also said that they will have the opportunity to highlight the growing security cooperation, explore ways to enhance that cooperation in maritime security, cyber security and counter terror and emphasize the importance of the Cyclops training center in Larnaca.

On the defense sector the talks will reaffirm the commitment to the strengthening of the partnership and will include the Cyprus- US road map for bilateral defense cooperation, he noted.

Kombos added that the lifting of defense trade restrictions on Cyprus in 2020 was a milestone "and we should work towards extending the waiver restriction period".

In his statements he also referred to the cooperation between the Cypriot police and the FBI to combat illicit finance and sanctions evasion and added that the dialogue offers an opportunity to enhance economic activity by strengthening commercial ties and attracting private investment.

"We stand ready to sign an MoU for Fulbright student English assistant program. On people to people ties, the main goal is to use the US visa waiver program and we are hoping that we'll have positive announcements in the next few months", he said.

The US top official said in his statements that he is excited to be in Cyprus for the first ever US- Republic of Cyprus Strategic Dialogue, adding that this is a big moment in the relationship between the two countries.

"And to be part of this feels like being part of an historic occasion", he noted.

James O'Brien said that the commitment of both their teams to make this possible would measure their success by whether their people feel safer and more prosperous, and whether the societies can promote their values.

He pointed to the bilateral cooperation in promoting security, prosperity and their values in this region and one of the great examples is the Cyclops center. "The key here is that it has trained hundreds of officials from the Republic of Cyprus and the region on all the elements that our people see every day. It's about border security, Cyber security and more and we anticipate it's becoming an important institution that will help benefit all", he said.

He also referred to the MoU to expand the Fulbright program and increase the number of teachers in teaching English, adding that this kind of people to people activity will give rise to generations of new opportunities for our societies to work together.

On security cooperation, O' Brien said that the US and Cyprus have found ways to expand their work in the area and they already discussed some practical steps to this end.

"An important marker on this road was the Defense cooperation road map that my colleague Celeste Wallander signed last month and that lays out a path forward for our security cooperation", he noted.

He said that the two countries cooperate on various areas i.e enforcement cooperation, sanctions enforcement  "so that we keep our people safe".

The US official referred to the investment cooperation as well, adding that this will lead to greater cooperation in all the fields that we know will help our people be more prosperous in the future.

"So today's the start of an even longer journey and I'm really excited to have the opportunity to mark how far we've come in the last few years, so thank you for your leadership and for your commitment here today", he said.