Greece’s National Security Council will meet on Wednesday to discuss the future of the delayed Greece-Cyprus-Israel electricity interconnection project, as regional tensions mount over the strategic infrastructure venture.
The high-level meeting, chaired by Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, comes as the underwater power cable project faces growing uncertainty following strong objections from Turkey, which has described the initiative as “provocative” and a “unilateral action”.
Greek Foreign Minister George Gerapetritis recently stated that surveying and cable-laying operations would resume “at the appropriate time,” emphasising that “there had not been any binding date for this. We will proceed as we should and when appropriate”.
Sources suggest underwater survey work for the interconnection might be postponed to the more distant future, as the Greek government weighs its options amid diplomatic pressure.
The power cable discussion forms part of a broader security agenda that includes Greece’s defence procurement programme and regional geopolitical developments in Ukraine and the Middle East.
Turkey’s foreign ministry has intensified its opposition to the project in recent weeks, warning it “will not remain idle” regarding what it considers encroachment on disputed maritime zones.
The tripartite power interconnection, which has received support from France due to French corporate interests in the project, is considered a priority energy infrastructure initiative for connecting the European and Eastern Mediterranean power grids.
The bimonthly security council meeting will also address Greece’s €25 billion defence programme, including the potential acquisition of a fourth French-made Belharra frigate.
(information from capital.gr/Dimitris Gkatsios)
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