President Emmanuel Macron will visit Cyprus on Monday, his office announced, as France deploys warships to the Mediterranean Sea following a drone attack by Iran on Cyprus a few days ago.
Macron will meet his Cypriot counterpart Nikos Christodoulides and Greece Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis in Paphos to demonstrate “solidarity” and outline detailed steps to “strengthen security around Cyprus and in the eastern Mediterranean,” the Élysée Palace said.
Cyprus, a member of the European Union, was targeted on Monday by drones manufactured in Iran, prompting Macron to order the deployment of the French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle to the Mediterranean, along with a frigate and air defense units to Cyprus.
“This visit aims to demonstrate France’s solidarity with Cyprus, a member state of the European Union with which we have a strategic partnership,” and which was recently hit “by several drones and missile attacks,” the Élysée Palace said.
“The visit to Cyprus will also allow Macron to emphasize the importance of guaranteeing freedom of navigation and maritime security in the Red Sea and the Strait of Hormuz, particularly through the European Union’s naval operation **Operation Aspides>,” the statement added.
