Robert Menendez, Jr. Briefed on Greece, Cyprus in Congressional Campaign

Robert Menendez, Jr, the son of Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Menendez, was briefed on issues relating to Greece and Cyprus on Wednesday in Washington D.C.

He met with the Ambassadors of Greece and Cyprus and Greek-American and Cypriot-American community leaders.

Last month Menendez, Jr. the Democratic attorney and recently-appointed board member of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, formally announced his candidacy, making him the overwhelming favorite to replace retiring Rep. Albio Sires (D-N.J.) in New Jersey’s heavily Democratic 8th District.

“This is a generation-defining moment. How we move forward in a time of insurrection, global pandemic, and economic uncertainty will define the America we leave for our children to inherit and will take all of us working together to succeed,” Menendez Jr. said in a statement.

“With our future, and our children’s future, at stake, we can no longer sit on the sidelines. That is why I am running for Congress and asking you to join with me in this fight.”

Menendez, Jr. briefed on Greece, Cyprus issues

While Menendez, Jr. has been to Greece and Cyprus numerous times over the years with his father and Cypriot-American leader Tasos Zambas, he took the time today to receive an in-depth briefing on issues of concern to Greece, Cyprus and the Ecumenical Patriarchate as well as American security interests in the Eastern Mediterranean.

Those attending this luncheon briefing, hosted by Andy Manatos and Mike Manatos, included: Ambassador of Greece to the US Alexandra Papadopoulou; Ambassador of Cyprus to the US Marios Lysiotis; Cypriot-American leader Tasos Zambas; and American Hellenic Institute President Nick Larigakis. The luncheon was also supported by AHEPA.

Father is a lifelong supporter of Greek, Cyprus issues

Senator Bob Menendez, a lifelong supporter of Greece and Cyprus on Capitol Hill, was the mastermind behind the U.S.-Greece Defense and Interparliamentary Partnership Act of 2021 which was included in the annual defense authorization bill in December 2021.

“The enactment of the U.S.-Greece Defense and Interparliamentary Partnership Act of 2021 is a powerful demonstration not only of the Congress’s commitment to strengthening our bilateral defense relationship and enduring ties with our Hellenic partners, but also of our appreciation for Greece’s pivotal role in securing regional security and economic prosperity in the Eastern Mediterranean,” Chairman Menendez said upon the passage of the bill.

He is also a critic of Erdogan’s Turkey and has expressed his opposition to the sale of US F-16 fighter jets to the country.

“I just really have a problem,” he said. “This is not the Turkey that we aspire for, is not the type of NATO ally that is behaving in a way that we should be able to go ahead and give it some of the most sophisticated fighting equipment.”