Presidents of the parliaments of Cyprus, Greece and Jordan agree to strengthen cooperation

Demetris Syllouris, the President of the House of Representatives of the Republic of Cyprus, Nikos Voutsi, the President of the Hellenic Parliament and Atef Tarawneh, the Speaker of the Jordanian House of Representatives, issued a Joint Statement on Monday, pledging to further strengthen cooperation between the three Parliaments through regular exchanges and in the framework of international parliamentary organizations.
 
The three House Presidents, who had their 1st Trilateral Meeting on 15 April, in the Dead Sea, Jordan, also expressed their commitment and support to the outcome of the trilateral summit of Jordan’s King Abdullah II Ibn Al- Hussein, President of Cyprus Nicos Anastasiades, and Greek Premier Alexis Tsipras, that was held in Amman on April 14.
 
The statement says that the three Presidents support the ongoing efforts for the resumption of the negotiating process, under the Good Office Mission of the UN Secretary General, for a just, comprehensive and viable settlement of the Cyprus problem, in line with the relevant United Nations Resolutions, international law, and the principles upon which the European Union is founded.
 
A comprehensive settlement would not only benefit the people of Cyprus, but also significantly contribute to peace and stability of the region, they underline.

Moreover, they strongly reaffirm their support for a comprehensive, just, negotiated and lasting settlement of the Israeli- Palestinian conflict based on the two- state solution and say that the status of Jerusalem must be determined within the framework of a comprehensive solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict that guarantees the establishment of an independent, viable and contiguous Palestinian state on pre- June 1967 lines, with East Jerusalem as its capita, living side by side with Israel.
 
With regard to regional cooperation on energy, tourism, education and culture, the Presidents of the three Parliaments have resolved to deliberate further on these matters, with the aim of producing tangible results through joint initiatives and actions. 
 
The Presidents of the Parliaments of Cyprus , Greece and Jordan also stress the significance of turning energy into a catalyst for peace and prosperity and of promoting energy security, in strict compliance with international law and the respect of States’ sovereign energy rights.
 
They have focused more particularly on joint initiatives and actions, which aim at further promoting energy saving, energy efficiency, environmental protection at combating marine pollution and Water desalination.
 
Moreover, they discussed ways to further promote cooperation in the field of tourism, more specifically through joint tourist packages targeting new markets, highlighting the need to further engage the diasporas of the three countries.
 
In the fields of education and culture, the Presidents of the three Parliaments have discussed possible ways towards further fostering mutual understanding and closer people-to-people relations. Facilitating and promoting the teaching of the Arabic and Greek languages was given particular attention as a key instrument in this respect.

Moreover, the Presidents have highlighted the rich cultural heritage of the three countries. In this respect, they stressed the need to build on cooperation initiated at the bilateral and trilateral levels, aiming at combating the illicit trade of antiquities and of other cultural heritage treasures.
 
It was agreed finally that the 2nd Trilateral Meeting of the Presidents of the Parliaments of Cyprus, Greece and Jordan will be held in Athens and the third in Nicosia.