NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) -- President Joe Biden issued a directive Wednesday that allows Cyprus to buy arms from the U.S. government and get surplus American military equipment in a move welcomed as promoting stability in the eastern Mediterranean.

From Cyprus' perspective, the development is a key step after the United States in 2020 lifted a decades-long arms embargo on the island nation. The government in Nicosia also see it as an acknowledgment of Cyprus' reliability as a U.S. partner in the region.

Cyprus helped deliver humanitarian aid to war-torn Gaza by way of a maritime corridor that was established and acting as a transit point for the evacuation of foreign nationals from Mideast conflict zones.

"The furnishing of defense articles and defense services" to Cyprus, Biden said in his executive action, "will strengthen the security of the United States and promote world peace."

U.S. Ambassador to Cyprus Julie D. Fisher said in a post on the social media platform X that the directive is an "important step in deepening the relationship, enhancing security cooperation and promoting stability" in the region.

Cyprus-U.S. relations have improved significantly in recent years, especially after the 2023 election of Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides who has underscored Cyprus' pro-Western stance and commitment to expanding defense ties with the U.S..

Christodoulides last month said the ethnically-divided Cyprus could join NATO once conditions allow for it. He has also invited FBI and U.S. Department of Justice officials to help train local law enforcement authorities on stopping financial crimes.

Since gaining independence from British colonial rule in 1960, successive Cypriot governments embraced a non-aligned foreign policy, walking a fine line between Washington and Moscow.

Biden's effective means Cyprus could purchase U.S.-made armaments at lower cost because it would be dealing directly with the U.S. government instead of private companies. Cyprus , with a gross domestic product about three quarters that of the U.S. state of Vermont, will also be eligible for surplus U.S. military equipment.

With the U.S. armaments market closed off to it for decades, European Union-member Cyprus had looked to other countries, including Russia, for weapons. Its current stock includes Soviet-era T80 main battle tanks and TOR-M1 anti-aircraft missile batteries.