The government has drafted an action plan at both a political and technocratic level in the EU and other international fora aiming to highlight the extent of the migration crisis Cyprus is confronted with.
This is what an official statement issued jointly on Friday by the ministries of the Foreign Affairs and of the Interior said.
This, it added, aims to ensure that Cyprus receives the assistance needed to effectively address it considering that the percentage of asylum applicants and beneficiaries of international protection amounts to 4% of the population.
“It is a particularly high percentage, given that in all other Member States the percentage is close to 1%. That is why it was agreed that migration will feature prominently in the agenda of contacts of both Foreign Minister Nikos Christodoulides and Interior Minister Nicos Nouris,” the announcement also said.
“The two Ministers will remain in continuous coordination ahead of the “jumbo” teleconference of EU Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Home Affairs that will take place on March 15, as well as ahead of the upcoming discussions on Turkey at EU level,” it added.
At a meeting on Thursday with the participation of experts from the two Ministries discussion and coordination focused on effectively promoting the positions of the Republic.
This is within the framework of the upcoming discussion of the new Migration Pact of the European Union.
“The internal dimension of migration, the gravity and scale of the situation in Cyprus and the disproportional weight Cyprus shoulders from migration flows as a front-line country were highlighted,” the announcement also said.
“Cyprus, as a result of its particularities, the fact that it is an island, with part of its territory under military occupation, is for the fourth consecutive year the EU Member State with the highest number of asylum applications in proportion to population” it added.
It was noted that the overwhelming majority of migration flows originated from Turkey, a country that fails to implement all agreements regarding migration towards Cyprus.
