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Macron to Visit Cyprus as France Deploys Warships to Mediterranean

This photograph shows screens broadcasting French President Emmanuel Macron's address on the war in Iran and its repercussions in the Middle East, from the Elysee Palace in Paris on March 3, 2026. (Photo by SEBASTIEN BOZON / AFP)
This photograph shows screens broadcasting French President Emmanuel Macron's address on the war in Iran and its repercussions in the Middle East, from the Elysee Palace in Paris on March 3, 2026. (Photo by SEBASTIEN BOZON / AFP)
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Macron to Visit Cyprus as France Deploys Warships to Mediterranean

This photograph shows screens broadcasting French President Emmanuel Macron's address on the war in Iran and its repercussions in the Middle East, from the Elysee Palace in Paris on March 3, 2026. (Photo by SEBASTIEN BOZON / AFP)
This photograph shows screens broadcasting French President Emmanuel Macron's address on the war in Iran and its repercussions in the Middle East, from the Elysee Palace in Paris on March 3, 2026. (Photo by SEBASTIEN BOZON / AFP)

President Emmanuel Macron will visit Cyprus on Monday, his office said, as France deploys warships to the Mediterranean following a drone attack on the island EU member days ago.

Macron will meet Cypriot counterpart Nikos Christodoulides and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis in Paphos to show "solidarity" and detail moves to "strengthen security around Cyprus and in the eastern Mediterranean", the Elysee said on Sunday.

The visit will take place as the war pitting US and Israel against Iran is in its second week, affecting much of the Middle East, AFP reported.

Cyprus on Monday was targeted by Iranian-made drones, leading Macron to order France's Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier to the Mediterranean and a frigate and air defence units to Cyprus.

"This trip is intended to demonstrate France's solidarity with Cyprus, a member state of the European Union with which we have a strategic partnership" and which was recently hit "by several drones and missile strikes", the Elysee said.

France has insisted its stance in the region is "strictly defensive".

The visit to Cyprus will also allow Macron "to emphasize the importance of guaranteeing freedom of navigation and maritime security in the Red Sea and the Strait of Hormuz, in particular through the European Union's Aspides maritime operation," it added.

There have been numerous attacks on ships navigating the Strait of Hormuz since the US-Israeli war on Iran started on February 28.

A government spokesman for Cyprus, Konstantinos Letymbiotis, said the visit will allow the leaders of Cyprus, Greece, and France to assess the "high level of coordination" between their nations.

Letymbiotis also highlighted the role of Italy, which like the United Kingdom, has deployed a warship to Cyprus.

On Sunday, Macron wrote on X that he had also spoken with the Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and the president of Azerbaijan.

Discussing the region with the Qatari ruler, Macron said he highlighted France's "defensive military support," particularly in the air, which he noted is deployed to the "benefit of Qatar."

"Qatar and France share the same conviction: beyond the clamour of arms, lasting stability for all must come through de-escalation and negotiation," Macron added.

Macron also said he offered France's "support and solidarity" to Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev after a drone strike on the country, which neighbors Iran, raised fears that the Middle East war could spill into the Caucasus.

 

 

 

 

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World

EU Ready to ‘Enhance’ Operations Protecting Middle East Shipping

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis speaks during a joint press conference with Cyprus' and France's presidents at Paphos military airport, in Paphos, Cyprus, 09 March 2026, (EPA)
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis speaks during a joint press conference with Cyprus' and France's presidents at Paphos military airport, in Paphos, Cyprus, 09 March 2026, (EPA)
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EU Ready to ‘Enhance’ Operations Protecting Middle East Shipping

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis speaks during a joint press conference with Cyprus' and France's presidents at Paphos military airport, in Paphos, Cyprus, 09 March 2026, (EPA)
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis speaks during a joint press conference with Cyprus' and France's presidents at Paphos military airport, in Paphos, Cyprus, 09 March 2026, (EPA)

The European Union said on Monday it was ready to bolster its maritime operations in the Middle East to protect shipping routes, after holding talks with regional leaders.

The EU has been discussing reinforcing its naval mission in the Red Sea after US-Israeli attacks on Iran triggered a broader regional war, causing maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz to all but halt.

European Council President Antonio Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen "expressed their openness to further tailor and enhance these operations in order to better respond to the situation", the bloc said in a statement.

They held video talks with leaders from countries in the region including Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Qatar, Syria, Türkiye and the United Arab Emirates.

A fifth of global crude passes through the Strait of Hormuz.

The EU has two maritime defensive operations in the region -- anti-piracy naval force Atalanta and Aspides.

The latter was launched in the Red Sea in 2024 to prevent attacks on trade vessels by Iran-backed Houthi militants.

Aspides is based in Greece but under Italy's operational military command. It currently has three warships -- one French, one Greek and one Italian.

Operation Atalanta has two ships, one in Oman and the other in Djibouti.

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis urged his European counterparts "to strengthen this operation (Aspides) with more naval assets".

"Few of us are participating at present but we must demonstrate European solidarity on a concrete level," he said.

He was speaking alongside French President Emmanuel Macron during a visit to Cyprus on Monday.

Macron said France would contribute to Aspides "over the long term" with two additional frigates.

World

Israel Says Iran’s New Supreme Leader a ‘Tyrant’ Who Will Continue ‘Regime’s Brutality’

A person holds a picture of the new Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei during a gathering in support of him in Tehran, Iran, 09 March 2026. (EPA)
A person holds a picture of the new Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei during a gathering in support of him in Tehran, Iran, 09 March 2026. (EPA)
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Israel Says Iran’s New Supreme Leader a ‘Tyrant’ Who Will Continue ‘Regime’s Brutality’

A person holds a picture of the new Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei during a gathering in support of him in Tehran, Iran, 09 March 2026. (EPA)
A person holds a picture of the new Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei during a gathering in support of him in Tehran, Iran, 09 March 2026. (EPA)

Israel's foreign ministry said Monday that Iran's new supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei was a "tyrant" like his slain father, and would continue what it described as the Iranian "regime's brutality". 

In a post on X featuring a picture of Mojtaba Khamenei and his father Ali Khamenei, holding guns, the ministry wrote: "Mojtaba Khamenei. Like Father Like Son". 

"Mojtaba Khamenei's hands are already stained with the bloodshed that defined his father's rule. Another tyrant to continue the Iranian regime's brutality," the ministry said, in Israel's first reaction to Mojtaba Khamenei's selection as supreme leader following the killing of his father on February 28 in Israeli strikes. 

Earlier, Israel's UN ambassador Danny Danon said Mojtaba Khamenei has the same radical ideas as in the past and Israel will target anyone who promotes radical ideas against it.

"Changing the man at the top does not change the regime," Danon told reporters at the United Nations when asked about Iran's naming of Khamenei to replace his ‌father.

"The new leader, unfortunately, is more of the same ideology, the same radical ideas, and ... anyone who will promote those radical ideas against us, we will target them, we will ⁠find them," Danon said.

He said the ‌people of Iran ‌should rise up to choose their next leader and added: "We ‌will have to create the conditions for them, ‌and that is what we are doing now."

Asked about the threat to crucial energy traffic in the Strait of Hormuz and Iran's attacks against neighboring countries, Danon ‌said Israel and the US were hunting Iran's missile launchers and degrading its ⁠capabilities.

"So it's ⁠going to be harder for them to attack vessels in the Strait of Hormuz. It doesn't mean it will be 100% guaranteed, but it will be harder for them to do that.

"So I'm optimistic about that. Every day we see the numbers of attacks, going down," Danon said.

The war has effectively shut the Strait of Hormuz, where a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas is shipped along Iran's coast.

World

Türkiye Says NATO Defenses Shot Down Second Incoming Iranian Missile

This handout photograph taken and released on March 9, 2026, by Turkish news agency DHA (Demiroren News Agency) shows part of a second Iranian ballistic missile destroyed by NATO in Turkish airspace. (Photo by Handout / DHA (Demiroren News Agency) / AFP)
This handout photograph taken and released on March 9, 2026, by Turkish news agency DHA (Demiroren News Agency) shows part of a second Iranian ballistic missile destroyed by NATO in Turkish airspace. (Photo by Handout / DHA (Demiroren News Agency) / AFP)
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Türkiye Says NATO Defenses Shot Down Second Incoming Iranian Missile

This handout photograph taken and released on March 9, 2026, by Turkish news agency DHA (Demiroren News Agency) shows part of a second Iranian ballistic missile destroyed by NATO in Turkish airspace. (Photo by Handout / DHA (Demiroren News Agency) / AFP)
This handout photograph taken and released on March 9, 2026, by Turkish news agency DHA (Demiroren News Agency) shows part of a second Iranian ballistic missile destroyed by NATO in Turkish airspace. (Photo by Handout / DHA (Demiroren News Agency) / AFP)

Türkiye said on Monday that NATO air defenses shot down a second Iranian ballistic missile that had entered its airspace and warned that it would move against any such threats, which increasingly pose a test for Ankara and the alliance.

The incident in southern Türkiye marks the second intercepted missile from Iran in the last week.

Türkiye, NATO's second-largest army and Iran's neighbor, had warned Tehran on Saturday against attacking again, but it has not suggested it wants to formally call on bloc members for further protection.

A NATO spokesperson confirmed that the alliance had intercepted a missile heading to Türkiye, and that it stood firm in its readiness to defend allies.

Unlike last ‌week's incoming ‌missile, which was downed outside Türkiye, the latest missile entered Turkish airspace. ‌Its fragments ⁠fell in a ⁠region sitting between a critical airbase to the west and a radar base to the east, both of which are used by the United States and NATO.

"We once again emphasize that all necessary measures will be taken decisively and without hesitation against any threat directed at our country's territory and airspace," the Turkish Defense Ministry said, adding there had been no casualties in the incident.

"We also reiterate that it is in everyone's interest to heed Türkiye’s warnings in this regard," it said.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Türkiye had delivered the necessary warnings ⁠to Iran after the missile incident.

"Iran continues to take wrong and ‌provocative steps," Erdogan said after a cabinet meeting in Ankara.

He ‌said that Türkiye would continue to take additional measures after deploying six F-16 fighter jets to northern Cyprus earlier on ‌Monday, adding that Türkiye’s main goal was to keep the country out of the "blaze" of ‌the Iran war.

RELIANCE ON NATO DEFENSES

Türkiye, an emerging leader in the global defense industry, lacks its own fully fledged air defenses despite development efforts, and has relied on NATO air defenses stationed in the eastern Mediterranean Sea in both incidents in the last week.

Türkiye did not immediately comment on any formal steps within NATO. It had previously said ‌it had no intention of invoking the bloc's Article 4 that would call allies to consult if a member is threatened. That could lead ⁠to Article 5, which ⁠would call NATO to defend its attacked ally.

Erdogan's office said Ankara was strongly reiterating its warning to all parties, namely Iran, to avoid endangering regional stability and civilians.

It was unclear where the missile was headed.

US air forces are stationed at Türkiye’s Incirlik base, and there is a NATO radar base in Malatya province to the northeast that provides vital protection for the alliance.

Ankara said the missile debris fell in empty fields in Gaziantep, which sits roughly between the two.

The US embassy in Türkiye ordered non-emergency government employees and families to leave its southern Adana consulate, where service was suspended, and it strongly encouraged Americans to leave southeast Türkiye.

Ankara says that Washington has not used Incirlik in its air assault, alongside Israel, on Iran, which triggered Tehran's missile and drone attacks.

Iran did not immediately comment on the incident, but it has said repeatedly that it is not at war with regional countries and is not explicitly targeting Türkiye.

Türkiye had sought to mediate US-Iran talks before the air war that began 10 days ago.