Cyprus is ready to play a central role in forging a strategic alliance between the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and the Eastern Mediterranean, as Minister of Energy, Commerce and Industry Giorgos Papanastasiou said on Tuesday at the Investopia Global Mediterranean Forum in Limassol. In a keynote panel titled “Bridging Prosperity: Unlocking GCC – Eastern Mediterranean Synergies”, Papanastasiou highlighted Cyprus’s geographic and economic position as a natural gateway between the Middle East and the European Union.