Biden, Cyprus president discuss administration push to win cease-fires in Gaza and Lebanon

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden and Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides on Wednesday discussed a new effort by the U.S. administration and mediators in the Middle East to forge cease-fires to end fighting in Lebanon and Gaza.

Christodoulides leads the European Union nation closest to Gaza. The small Mediterranean island nation has played a critical role in efforts to get humanitarian aid into Gaza since the war between Hamas and Israel began more than a year ago.

He said that Biden and White House officials briefed him on the latest stepped-up efforts by the U.S. administration and other mediators but declined to offer further details about the discussion.

''The most important, the number one priority of the international community now is to have a cease-fire in the region,'' Christodoulides told reporters after his Oval Office talks with Biden.

He added that situation on the ground changes daily but that he was ''quite optimistic'' that a Lebanon cease-fire deal could emerge in one to two weeks.

Senior White House officials Brett McGurk and Amos Hochstein will visit Israel on Thursday for talks on possible cease-fires in both Lebanon and Gaza, and on the release of hostages held by Hamas, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said. She said CIA Director Bill Burns will head to Egypt on Thursday to discuss those efforts.

A proposal to end the war between Israel and Hezbollah calls for a two-month cease-fire during which Israeli forces would withdraw from Lebanon, and Hezbollah would end its armed presence along the country's southern border, according to two U.S. officials familiar with the talks said. The officials were not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on the condition of anonymity.

The meeting, the first Oval visit by a Cypriot president since 1996, comes days after U.S. and Cypriot officials announced the countries are launching a strategic dialogue aimed at bolstering security and stability in a crisis-wracked region through initiatives including counterterrorism training of personnel from Middle Eastern countries and fighting sanctions evasion.

The new coordination is just the latest example of Cyprus tightening relations with the U.S. after decades of walking a tightrope between Washington and Moscow. Cyprus has moved closer to the U.S. since Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

''Today we stood against Russia's vicious onslaught against Ukraine, we launched a strategic dialogue, we increased cooperation across a range of issues, from energy security to artificial intelligence, and we surged humanitarian aid, delivering 8000 metric tons to Gaza,'' Biden said.

The U.S. is also funding a center on the island nation under the acronym CYCLOPS that trains personnel from Cyprus and neighboring countries on maritime and cybersecurity as well as counterterrorism techniques.

The Cyprus government has also stepped up coordination with local law enforcement, the U.S. Department of Justice and the FBI to help combat the evasion of sanctions against Russia and other countries.

Last month, Cyprus and the U.S. signed a defense cooperation framework agreement that outlines ways the two countries can enhance their response to regional humanitarian crises and security concerns.

Christodoulides said Cyprus has proven to be a ''predictable and reliable partner of the United States in a region of great geopolitical importance.''

Earlier this year, Cyprus helped the U.S. establish a Gaza maritime corridor for the shipborne delivery of humanitarian aid to the Palestinian territory.

The $230 million temporary pier project was derided as a boondoggle by critics and was beset by turbulent weather, security threats and sweeping personnel restrictions. The Pentagon pulled the plug on the effort after about four months.

The Biden administration had set a goal of the U.S. sea route and pier providing food to feed 1.5 million people for 90 days. It fell short, bringing in enough to feed about 450,000 people for a month before shutting down, according to a USAID inspector general's report.