Israel defence minister in Cyprus to view military exercise

Israel’s Defence Minister Benny Gantz arrive in Cyprus on Tuesday to see the large bilateral military exercise Agapinor, which started on Sunday.

He was greeted at Paphos international airport by permanent secretary of the defence ministry Andreas Louka and National Guard chief, General Demokritos Zervakis.

The large-scale exercise involved Cyprus and Israel sea, land and air forces.

According to the Jerusalem Post, before his arrival Gantz had written on Twitter that he had spoken to his “friend” and Cypriot counterpart Charalambos Petrides with whom he had discussed the importance of the exercise.

“I stressed the military bond between our two countries that contributes to regional stability,” he tweeted.

The Israeli army is calling the exercise, which will be completed on Thursday, by a different name, Chariots of Fire.

The defence ministry said the exercise was part of bilateral defence agreements with Israel, and shows the excellent relations between the two countries over the last few years in terms of defence and security.