On Monday August 5, 2019, The Cyprus Institute (CyI) and the Mediterranean Sea Research Center of Israel (MERCI) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU).

With the signing of the MoU, CyI and MERCI will cooperate in common fields of activity to promote and develop marine research in the Eastern Mediterranean, with an emphasis on monitoring and research of the impacts of climate change on the marine environment, on deep sea archaeology, and on monitoring and research examination of the impacts of hydrocarbon exploration and drilling in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea.