The Cradle | October 23, 2026

Cyprus hosted the leadership of the pro-Israel US lobbying group, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), in Nicosia on 21 October, pledging to deepen the island’s ties with Israel and the US.

Outgoing AIPAC president Bernard Kaminetsky and his successor, Yehuda Neuberger, led the delegation to the presidential palace for talks with Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides.

The talks focused on accelerating the 3+1 Mechanism, a partnership binding Cyprus, Greece, Israel, and the US to coordinate on energy, security, and infrastructure.

AIPAC, in return, pledged to keep championing Cypriot interests in Washington.

Meanwhile, pro-Israel lobbies have been embedding themselves inside the Cypriot and Greek parliaments, with Israel Allies Foundation (IAF) launching caucuses in both legislatures to bring lawmakers into line with Israel’s regional agenda.

IAF president Josh Reinstein unveiled the Cypriot caucus on 14 October after meeting Christodoulides, explicitly pitting the initiative against Ankara by branding Turkiye a “common enemy” of Israel and Cyprus.

Cyprus’s main left-wing opposition party condemned the MPs for turning parliament into a lobby for Israel amid its ongoing genocide in Gaza, while in Greece, one left-wing party warned that it would turn parliament into a tool for whitewashing war crimes.

Israel’s deepening ties with Greece and Cyprus have developed over the past decade into a strategic alignment that combines energy cooperation, military coordination, and shared opposition to Turkish maritime claims in the Eastern Mediterranean.

The US has encouraged the relationship through the 3+1 format, which brings Washington into the Israel–Greece–Cyprus trilateral partnership and frames it as a vehicle for regional stability, energy security, and cooperation among “like-minded” partners.

Through the arrangement, Israel gains a gateway to European markets through Greece and Cyprus, along with diplomatic backing in disputes over offshore gas fields.

Athens and Nicosia, in turn, receive Israeli military technology and a partner against Turkiye’s assertive stance on maritime zones, airspace, and the divided island of Cyprus.

Washington, meanwhile, sees the axis as part of a broader effort to anchor energy routes and security cooperation in the Eastern Mediterranean while reducing reliance on rival powers, even as the US courts Ankara with offers of F-35 sales and sanctions relief.

Israeli hostility toward Ankara, and its efforts to curb Turkish power, stem from fear that Washington’s growing dependence on Turkiye will erode Israel’s regional dominance.

Despite the friction, Turkiye continued to serve as a conduit for Azerbaijani crude to Israel through the Baku–Tbilisi–Ceyhan Pipeline (BTC) and Ceyhan Port, even after cutting direct trade in May 2024 and throughout Israel’s genocide of the Palestinians in Gaza.

A ship called the Agioi Fanendes, which had just left Russia's Baltic Sea port of Primorsk, was carrying 40,000 metric tons to New York and had been traveling westwards through the Baltic Sea ever since.

The Greek Ministry of Defence plans to merge or close dozens of military units and facilities, while simultaneously establishing new commands for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), space operations, and cyber warfare. This restructuring is estimated by authorities to save 530 million euros over five years. On Tuesday, Defence Minister Nikos Dendias presented the third phase […]

Social media can affect children’s sleep, concentration, social relationships and psychological development.

On Thursday evening, the Greek parliament approved legislation banning children under 15 from accessing social media from Jan. 1, 2027.

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The legislation requires social media platforms to implement age-verification measures to ensure compliance. Companies that fail to meet the requirements could face fines of up to 6 percent of their global annual turnover.

Addressing parliament ahead of the vote, Digital Governance and Artificial Intelligence Minister Dimitris Papastergiou described the measure as a necessary step that is compatible with the European Union’s (EU) existing regulatory framework.

“It would have been very easy to do absolutely nothing today and wait for the perfect European law. But the challenge is here. Children are sinking into the internet every day, and I believe a responsible government must do what it is obliged to do,” he said.

4 countries. 1 growing movement.

France, Denmark, Spain and Greece are all moving to block children from social media — and Greece wants Brussels to make it a Europe-wide rule.#EUXL pic.twitter.com/xH6iJrO139

— euronews (@euronews) April 28, 2026

Minister of State Akis Skertsos said technology should be regulated in ways that give children greater freedom to grow up safely.

Excessive use of social media can negatively affect children’s sleep, concentration, social relationships and psychological development, said Health Minister Adonis Georgiadis, who described digital addiction as a public health challenge.

The legislation forms part of broader government efforts to protect children from harmful online content, cyberbullying and platform features that encourage excessive use. Greece aims to become the first EU member state to introduce such a ban.

The French parliament passed legislation on July 21 aimed at protecting minors from the risks associated with social media use. However, the French Constitutional Council ruled on Aug. 14 that the key provision banning under-15s from accessing social media was unconstitutional.

teleSUR/ JF

Source: Xinhua

Greece has sent a letter to the United Nations, in which it emphasizes the invalidity of the 2019 Turkish-Libyan maritime memorandum recently ratified by the Libyan House of Representatives, Greek diplomatic sources said on Friday. Greece’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Aglaia Balta, sent a letter to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Thursday, acting […]

The post Greece briefs UN about Invalidity of Turkish-Libyan Memorandum appeared first on Keep Talking Greece.

The bill banning minors under the age of 15 from using social media online from January 1, 2027, was approved by a majority in Parliament’s plenary session late on Thursday. Only ruling New Democracy (ND) voted in favor of the bill in principle. Αong opposition parties, PASOK voted “present”, while SYRIZA, Greek Solution, KKE, Niki […]

The post Greece adopts law to ban social media access to minors under 15 appeared first on Keep Talking Greece.