Eastern Med Security Boost: Bill Funds New US-Israel-Greece-Cyprus Counterterrorism & Maritime Training Partnership

This legislation, the American-Hellenic-Israeli Eastern Mediterranean Counterterrorism and Maritime Security Partnership Act of 2025, aims to significantly deepen security cooperation between the United States, Israel, Greece, and the Republic of Cyprus. It formalizes a '3+1' partnership structure, establishing new joint training programs focused on counterterrorism and maritime security, authorizing millions in funding for facilities and operations, and removing previous restrictions on defense sales to Cyprus.

Forging Closer Ties: The '3+1' Framework

The bill sets up formal channels for regular security discussions. It creates an "Interparliamentary Eastern Mediterranean Security Cooperation Group" (Section 6), bringing together lawmakers from the four countries at least twice a year to talk strategy on counterterrorism and maritime security. Think of it as getting the legislative branches formally synced up. Alongside this, an "Interexecutive Eastern Mediterranean Security Cooperation Group" (Section 7) is established, involving officials from the U.S. State, Defense, and Homeland Security departments meeting with their counterparts from Israel, Greece, and Cyprus, also at least twice annually. This puts the day-to-day government agencies in regular contact to coordinate efforts on the ground.

New Training Grounds: CERBERUS and TRIREME

Two major training initiatives get greenlit and funded. First, the CERBERUS program (Section 8) focuses on counterterrorism cooperation, potentially utilizing the existing C.Y.C.L.O.P.S. training center in Cyprus. This involves $5 million upfront for facilities and equipment, $2 million annually (2026-2029) for general support to Cyprus for the center, and $1.5 million annually (2026-2029) for the Defense Department to run the training. Second, the TRIREME program (Section 9) targets maritime security, planned for the Souda Naval Base in Greece. This also gets $5 million for facilities/equipment, $2 million annually (2026-2029) for Greek support of the facilities, and another $1.5 million annually (2026-2029) for the Defense Department to manage the training. The goal is to get security personnel from all four nations working and learning together, improving how they handle shared threats. The bill also authorizes additional International Military Education and Training (IMET) funds specifically for these partners (Section 12).

Policy Shifts and Dollars Deployed

Beyond training, the bill makes a significant policy change by removing long-standing limitations on the sale or transfer of U.S. defense articles to the Republic of Cyprus (Section 11). This potentially opens the door for Cyprus to acquire different types of U.S. military equipment than previously allowed, which could shift regional defense dynamics. The legislation mandates the Secretary of Defense, working with the Secretary of State, to develop and report comprehensive strategies to Congress within one year on enhancing both counterterrorism and maritime security cooperation with these partners (Section 10). Regular progress reports and briefings on the new training programs are also required (Sections 8 & 9), ensuring Congress stays in the loop on how the authorized funds – totaling millions annually through 2029 – are being used and what results are being achieved.