Cyprus, Greece and Malta are expanding their maritime partnership, with Italy joining the format for the first time at a meeting due to take place in Limassol on September 9, Deputy Minister of Shipping Marina Hadjimanoli told CNA.
The expansion is the result of targeted and persistent efforts to strengthen regional cooperation and the Republic of Cyprus’s strategic alliances in the sector, according to Hadjimanoli. Italy’s presence, she added, strengthens the momentum of the collaboration.
It also confirms the four countries’ shared will for closer coordination and substantive dialogue on the challenges and opportunities shaping the industry’s future, she said.
The initiative for Italy’s participation arose after the Deputy Minister’s visit to Rome, following an invitation from her Italian counterpart. Italy’s positive response, she explained, confirms the shared belief that the challenges facing shipping today require closer coordination, cooperation and joint approaches.
Returns to Cyprus after eight years
The September 9 meeting will be the ninth in the series and marks its return to Cyprus after eight years. Cyprus hosted the sixth trilateral meeting between Cyprus, Greece and Malta in 2018, while the most recent was held in Greece in 2023.
Talks will focus on issues of key importance to the sector’s future, including the competitiveness of European shipping, decarbonisation, legislative and policy developments at European level, and matters expected to occupy the International Maritime Organization and EU institutions in the coming months.
These are “issues that will substantially affect the future of shipping” and require substantive dialogue between states with a strong maritime footprint, the Deputy Minister stressed.
She noted that Cyprus, Greece, Italy and Malta are among the most important shipping centres both in Europe and internationally.
