Israel will allow international flights to resume on August 1, with Greece and Cyprus being the first destinations to be given a green light, the country’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced on Tuesday afternoon, following a meeting with Greek counterpart Kyriakos Mitsotakis in Jerusalem.

“We are looking now into reopening tourism, in which case Greece and Cyprus will be the first,” Netanyahu said in joint comments to the press after their meeting at the Waldorf Astoria hotel.

The Israeli premier clarified that this decision will depend on how the country copes with the coronavirus pandemic closer to the date.

For his part, Mitsotakis said that tourism is important to Greece and his country will prioritize health and safety: “If all goes to plan, on August 1 we’ll open tourist destinations to Israelis,” he told the press.

This article was first published by ekathimerini.com