Following the 3+1 Energy Ministerial, Cyprus, Greece, Israel and the United States declared common intent to promote energy security and cooperation in the Eastern Mediterranean as well as to develop and to protect critical energy infrastructure projects.
Meeting in Athens on November 6 on the sidelines of the Partnership for Transatlantic Energy Cooperation (P-TEC), the energy ministers of Cyprus, Greece, Israel – George Papanastasiou, Stavros Papastavrou and Eli Cohen as well as the U.S. Secretaries for Energy, Chris Wright, and the Interior, Doug Burgum, who are also the Co-chairs of the United States’ National Energy Dominance Council, issued a statement reaffirming their shared commitment to promoting energy security and cooperation in the Eastern Mediterranean, including through the Eastern Mediterranean Energy Center, as key to regional strategic stability and resilience.
“The Ministers reaffirmed their support for broader regional interconnectivity projects, currently in progress and future ones, within the context of the India Middle East Europe Corridor (IMEC); energy development; and cooperation on energy infrastructure protection,” the statement read.
“In addition, they committed to use the 3+1 format to support the goal of diversifying the region’s energy supplies by reducing reliance on malign actors and improving connectivity between like-minded regional partners. They condemned Russian attempts to circumvent oil sanctions and finance its continuing war on Ukraine,” the statement read.
Strengthen Southeast Europe’s energy connectivity
On that note, during the P-TEC meeting in Athens the TSOs of Greece, Bulgaria, Romania, Moldova and Ukraine took another important step in expanding the geography of gas supply routes via the Vertical Corridor.
The natural gas transmission system operators of Greece, Bulgaria, Romania, Moldova and Ukraine – DESFA, Bulgartransgaz & Gas Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria (ICGB), Transgaz, VestMoldTransgaz, and Gas TSO of Ukraine – signed a joint letter to their national energy regulators requesting approval for the launch of two new cross-border capacity products – Route 2 and Route 3, DESFA said in a press release.
Route 2 and Route 3 will enable discounted natural gas routes from the Alexandroupolis liquified natural gas (LNG) terminal and the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) through the Greece-Bulgaria interconnector operated by ICGB and onward via the Trans-Balkan pipeline to Romania, Moldova and Ukraine, ICGB said in a press release.
This is yet another reinforcement for the Vertical Gas Corridor’s strategic positioning, leveraging LNG and Caspian gas to reinforce long-term energy security and market integration, DESFA and ICGB said.
As a strong advocate for closer regional cooperation and flexibility in products to better reflect market needs, ICGB played a leading role in developing and coordinating the proposals for the new routes. “Today’s signing demonstrates the shared determination of the region’s gas operators to act in solidarity and ensure that energy continues to flow safely and affordably across borders,” ICGB Executive Officers Teodora Georgieva and George Satlas. ICGB, has introduced substantial discount rate on its tariff – 46 percent, reaffirming company’s commitment to creating economically viable and competitive options for cross-border gas supply.
Europe-Israel energy infrastructure cooperation
At their statement after the 3+1 meeting in Athens, the ministers of Cyprus, Greece, Israel and the U.S. also reaffirmed their commitment to Europe-Israel energy infrastructure cooperation, indirectly referring to the planned electrical interconnection between Greece, Cyprus and Israel.
Finally, the ministers announced they aim to convene in Washington, D.C., in the second quarter of 2026 to further build out energy cooperation between their countries under the framework of the Eastern Mediterranean 3+1 Energy Dialogue. No surprises there, another joint meeting was planned to keep the process moving. It should not be forgotten that the P-TEC initiative itself as well as the 3+1 concept was developed during then-President Donald Trump’s first term.
Although wide media attention was given to the 3+1 Energy Ministerial, the P-TEC meeting and the high level U.S. visitors in the local press, the joint statement reads like a regional “to-do” list for expanded cooperation, and little more. It will soon be forgotten as will the colorful theatrics surrounding the two-day event. The work done in Athens by the region’s natural gas transmission system operators at the technocratic level will likely go down as more important in the West’s long-term efforts to assist Ukraine to build increased energy resilience through use of the Vertical Corridor.