Greece, Cyprus, US and Israel to launch East Med Energy Center
US Secretary of Energy Chris Wright. [AP]Lena Argiri
Greece, Cyprus, Israel and the US – also known as the 3+1 scheme – will announce on Thursday in Houston, Texas, the creation of the East Med Energy Center, implementing a provision of the EastMed Act that has remained pending since 2019, when the relevant law was passed.
The establishment of this permanent transatlantic cooperation mechanism in the fields of energy, technology, innovation and research was one of the central provisions of the emblematic law, with which Washington institutionalized strategic cooperation with Greece, Cyprus and Israel in the Eastern Mediterranean. At the time, the US Congress had authorized the US Department of Energy to proceed with the creation of the center, which was designed to serve as a platform for connecting universities, research institutions and private sector businesses.
The inauguration of the Energy Center will take place at Rice University’s Baker Institute, in the presence of US Secretary of Energy Chris Wright, Minister of Environment and Energy Stavros Papastavrou, Cyprus Minister of Energy Michalis Damianou, as well as representatives of the private sector and leading US energy companies. Israel will be represented by Ambassador to Washington Yechiel Leiter and officials from the Ministry of Energy, as Energy Minister Eli Cohen has canceled his trip to the US due to commitments.
It will be preceded by a 3+1 meeting on the same day, where energy security and regional coordination issues, strategic infrastructure projects, as well as new topics such as the protection of critical energy infrastructure, cybersecurity and technological developments in the energy sector will be discussed. Separate bilateral meetings of Wright with the ministers of Greece and Cyprus will also take place on the same day. A joint statement is expected to be issued after the completion of the work.
Of particular interest is the fact that the legislative text itself for the establishment of the center provides that its mission includes the analysis of potential crises and threats related to competition for natural resources, energy reserves and strategic investments or acquisitions of energy assets by third powers in the region.
This provision also sheds light on the geopolitical logic behind the creation of the center. The drafters of the law saw the Eastern Mediterranean not only as a region of energy opportunities, but also as a field of increasing geopolitical competition, where gaining influence through investments in energy infrastructure, ports, transport networks and natural resources can have significant implications for regional security.
In this sense, the East Med Energy Center will not only function as an innovation and research body, but also as a strategic analysis and early warning mechanism for the 3+1 countries.
At the same time, it aspires to be the most important institutional legacy of the EastMed Act and one of the main cooperation mechanisms of the four countries for the coming years.
SOURCE: https://www.ekathimerini.com/economy/energy/1306000/greece-cyprus-us-and-israel-to-launch-the-east-med-energy-center/ Cyprus Energy Israel US, Greece