The Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis is participating in a trilateral meeting with the leaders of Egypt and Cyprus, Fattah El-Sisi and Nikos Christodoulides, taking place in Cairo, Egypt on Wednesday, Jan. 8. The trilateral gives Athens the opportunity to play a pivotal role in the Eastern Mediterranean, as Greece is considered a pillar of stability and security by its partners and allies in a key region of the global map.

The developments in Syria are expected to be high on the agenda of discussions, with Athens reiterating that its priority is to ensure the unity, independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity of the country, as well as emphasizing that all religious minorities must be respected.

The trilateral meeting is also expected to address Turkey’s systematic attempts to expand its influence over the new regime in Syria with the ultimate aim being a potential Turkish-Syrian agreement on the delineation of maritime zones.

In response to this pirate-like approach by Ankara, Greece and Cyprus counter with the lawful agreements on the delimitation of Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZ) that they have signed with Egypt, with the Greece-Egypt agreement, in particular, further being strengthened by the laying of the cable.

The three leaders will also focus on the energy cooperation of their countries, with particular emphasis on the Greece-Egypt electricity interconnection project. The three men are also set to touch upon the issues of migration and security as well.

At the forefront of the countries’ energy cooperation, is the flagship project of the Greece-Egypt electricity interconnection, ensuring the transit of natural gas from Egyptian facilities to Greece, a project that is not merely considered an interconnection between Greece and Egypt but one that connects Egypt with the EU as a whole.

The importance of the energy collaboration is further underscored by the fact that Mitsotakis and Sisi will engage in a private talk preceding the trilateral meeting.

In Cairo, Mitsotakis and Christodoulides will have the opportunity to highlight the trilateral framework with Egypt as an example of multilateral cooperation that promotes stability in the wider region, guided by the principles of good neighborliness and international law. The Greece-Egypt-Cyprus trilateral partnership aims to send a message of stability in a turbulent region.