Dendias said the Greek prime minister had spoken with Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides, and that he himself had been in continuous contact with his Cypriot counterpart, Vassilis Palmas, over the preceding two days.
In a statement, Dendias said: ‘Following the unprovoked attacks on the territory of the Republic of Cyprus, I assured Mr Palmas that Greece, throughout the current crisis, will contribute in every possible way to the defence of the Republic of Cyprus, so that threats and illegal actions on its territory can be addressed.’
He confirmed that the frigate Kimon was being dispatched immediately, along with a second frigate carrying the Kentaurus unmanned aerial vehicle countermeasure system, and that the F-16s would contribute to Cyprus’s air defence.
‘For better coordination of actions with the Republic of Cyprus, I will travel tomorrow, together with the Chief of the Hellenic National Defence General Staff, to Cyprus, where I will be received by President Christodoulides and will collaborate with Vassilis Palmas,’ Dendias added.
The Cypriot government welcomed the deployment. In a post on social media, government spokesman Konstantinos Letymbiotis wrote: ‘We thank the Greek government for its response following the telephone conversation that Nikos Christodoulides had today with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis.’ He confirmed that the two frigates and F-16s were being sent ‘in the context of the increased preventive measures being taken due to developments in the wider region’.
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