HIGHDIPLOMATIC
Macron lands in Cyprus — CDG off Crete — trilateral summit with Cypriot and Greek leaders
·Paphos, Cyprus
Macron arrives in Paphos, Cyprus. Meets Cypriot President Christodoulides and Greek PM Mitsotakis. CDG carrier stationed off Crete. Macron spoke with Netanyahu this morning — first substantive call since war began. Plans to visit CDG this afternoon.
French President Emmanuel Macron landed in Paphos, Cyprus, for a trilateral meeting with Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis focused on regional security amid the ongoing US-Israeli war against Iran. France's Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier is currently stationed off the coast of Crete. Macron ordered the CDG to the Mediterranean after Cyprus was struck by Iranian-made drones last week. France has also deployed a frigate and air defense units to Cyprus. Macron spoke with Prime Minister Netanyahu this morning about the situation in Lebanon and the Middle East — the first such call since the summer of 2025, resumed only last week. Macron was scheduled to visit the Charles de Gaulle carrier group this afternoon. The visit to Cyprus signals France is taking the leading European role in the Mediterranean dimension of this war — bridging NATO's eastern flank (Turkey), the front-line island (Cyprus), and its own carrier group into a coherent European security posture.
Sources