During the official welcoming ceremony, the national anthems of Cyprus and Israel were performed and a military guard presented honors. The ceremony took place in the presence of leaders of religious groups based in Jerusalem, including the Patriarch Theophilos III of Jerusalem.
After the ceremony, in his welcoming remarks, Rivlin said: “The relations between Israel and Cyprus between our governments, between our two peoples are long-standing”.
“In recent years especially, we have seen this relationship go from strength to strength. Indeed, trade between us has doubled over the last five years; we have seen an increase in the dialogue between our governments. And in the cooperation between Israel and Cyprus almost in every field: from culture to tourism, to economy, energy, water and gas.”
In his remarks Anastasiades said: “Cyprus and Israel are geographical neighbours, which could partly account for our close relations. But our friendship extends beyond that, we share common democratic values and concerns which is why we have grown to rely on each other’s assistance and we have learned that we can both gain from this cooperation.”
Anastasiades said in recent years there had been an unprecedented growth in all aspects of bilateral relations; political, economic, (including cooperation on energy) and in the area of people to people contacts and cultural exchanges.