Israel and Cyprus Sign Patrol-Vessel Supply and Upgrade Agreement

Israel and Cyprus signed a defense agreement on Monday in Cyprus for a new offshore patrol vessel and an upgrade to an existing ship. Israel Shipyards will build the new vessel, which will carry Rafael naval systems, while systems aboard Cyprus’s IOANNIDES patrol vessel will also be upgraded. Israeli Defense Ministry Director General Amir Baram and Cyprus’s Acting Permanent Secretary of Defence, Stelios Kountouris, signed the agreement. Cyprus’s Defence Ministry said the vessels would strengthen its Naval Command’s patrol, surveillance and search-and-rescue capabilities.