American-Hellenic-Israeli Eastern Mediterranean Counterterrorism and Maritime Security Partnership Act of 2025
The American-Hellenic-Israeli Eastern Mediterranean Counterterrorism and Maritime Security Partnership Act of 2025 aims to deepen and formalize U.S. security cooperation with Israel, Greece, and the Republic of Cyprus within a structured “3+1” framework. The bill authorizes new training programs (CERBERUS for counterterrorism and TRIREME for maritime security), expands interparliamentary and interexecutive coordination, and raises the visibility and funding of joint activities at key facilities like Cyprus’s CY-CLOPS center and the Greek Souda Bay base. It also seeks to remove certain restrictions related to defense articles and security assistance to Cyprus, and it sets explicit funding paths to build out facilities, equipment, and interoperability programs for all four partners. In short, the bill is designed to institutionalize and accelerate trilateral-turned-quadrilateral security collaboration in the Eastern Mediterranean, with a strong emphasis on counterterrorism, maritime security, and interagency interoperability. If enacted, the bill would likely increase U.S. and partner capacity for combined CT and maritime operations, deepen parliamentary and executive engagement among the four countries, and expand presence and training infrastructure in Cyprus and Greece. It also creates formal reporting and strategy requirements to Congress, increasing congressional oversight of the 3+1 efforts.
Key Points
- 1Establishes CERBERUS and TRIREME training programs
- 2- CERBERUS (Counterterrorism Education for Readiness Building in the East-Mediterranean Region to Unify Security) to be conducted at the Cyprus Center for Land, Open-seas, and Port Security (CY-CLOPS) to increase counterterrorism cooperation and interoperability, available to ministry, agency, and headquarters-level personnel.
- 3- TRIREME (Training and Readiness Initiative for Regional East-Mediterranean Maritime-Security Enforcement) to be conducted at the Greek Souda Naval Base for regional maritime security training, available to relevant ministries/agencies/headquarters.
- 4- Both programs require training elements that respect civilian authority and include periodic reporting to Congress.
- 5Creates security-focused intergovernmental bodies
- 6- A US-Israel-Greece-C Cyprus Interparliamentary Eastern Mediterranean Security Cooperation Group (6 US Senators and 6 US House Members, with at least 2 from committees) to meet at least twice yearly with counterparts from Israel, Greece, and Cyprus.
- 7- A parallel Interexecutive Group with designated U.S. State, Defense, and Homeland Security officers to meet at least twice yearly with their Israeli, Greek, and Cypriot counterparts.
- 8Policy and strategic aims
- 9- Establishes a formal U.S. policy subcomponent within the 3+1 framework to expand strategic engagement, joint exercises, multilateral dialogues, and participation in CT and maritime security initiatives.
- 10- Expands participation in the Combating Terrorism Fellowship Program and strengthens CY-CLOPS and Souda Bay-based counterterrorism/maritime security initiatives.
- 11- Emphasizes expanded IMET (International Military Education and Training) cooperation with Israel, Greece, and Cyprus to improve interoperability.
- 12Funding and facilities
- 13- Authorizes funds to build new facilities at CY-CLOPS ($5 million) and at Souda Bay ($5 million), plus ongoing general support for CY-CLOPS and Souda Bay facilities ($2 million to Greece annually; CY-CLOPS general support $2 million annually for 2026–2029).
- 14- IMET funding authorized for Israel ($1 million/year), Greece ($250,000/year), and Cyprus ($250,000/year) for 2026–2029.
- 15- Additional appropriations proposed for implementing CERBERUS ($1.5 million/year) and TRIREME ($1.5 million/year).
- 16Legal/operational changes
- 17- Section 5 clarifies that the scheduled termination of the 3+1 interparliamentary group is eliminated, keeping the legislative mechanism in place.
- 18- Section 11 seeks to eliminate certain restrictions and exclusions related to defense articles and security assistance to Cyprus, signaling a more permissive framework for security cooperation with Cyprus.
- 19Reporting and oversight
- 20- Requires strategy reports on CT cooperation and maritime security within one year, with unclassified main text and potential classified annexes.
- 21- Requires ongoing implementation updates and briefings to Congress on progress and results of CERBERUS and TRIREME.