The Cypriot Prime Minister, Nikos Christodoulides, is expected to land in Beirut on Monday morning. His official visit will center around finding possible solutions with Lebanese authorities for the incessant flow of displaced Syrians to the island from the Lebanese coast. He will be accompanied by his Minister of Interior and Foreign Affairs, Konstantinos Ioannou.
In an interview with the British newspaper 'The Guardian', Ioannou said that the arrival of boats carrying Syrian migrants from the Lebanese coast was incessant and that the island’s leaders would discuss in Beirut the possibility of offering further technical assistance to Lebanon to combat the flow of illegal Syrian migrants.
Christodoulides, who is also the head of the island’s government, will be received at 9:30 AM in the Governmental Palace for a meeting with Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati. On Sunday, he discussed the issue with the President of the European Union (EU), Ursula von der Leyen, in Athens. Nicosia is seeking Brussels’ help in resolving the issue.
On Tuesday, the Cypriot President had already called on the European Union to take stricter measures to halt the influx of illegal migrants, the majority of whom are Syrian, from Lebanon.
In his interview with The Guardian, Ioannou said that he was convinced that Lebanon should benefit from financial aid from the EU, similar to the aid granted to Egypt (in March, the EU concluded a 7.4-billion-euro pact with Egypt in exchange for a reduction in the flow of refugees to Europe).
The Cypriot Minister of Interior also said that the island was increasing its capacity to receive refugees with EU funds but also wanted Brussels to consider declaring parts of Syria safe for repatriation as part of a wider re-evaluation of migration policies.
“Refugees are misinformed by smuggling networks and don’t know that Cyprus is not part of the Schengen area (the European area where border controls are abolished). They think that, once here, they’ll be able to take the train to Berlin.”
The Caretaker Prime Minister, Najib Mikati, expressed surprise on Thursday at the start of a diplomatic crisis with Cyprus over this issue, adding that he had asked his Cypriot counterpart to put pressure on the European Union to help Lebanon repatriate illegal migrants.
Last week, 15 boats carrying 800 people made the 10-hour journey from Lebanon. Most of the passengers were young men, but there were also 100 unaccompanied children for whom the Cypriot government had to provide guardianship, according to the Cypriot minister.
According to The Guardian, more than 2,000 people crossed the sea corridor between Lebanon and Cyprus in the first quarter of 2024, compared with 78 in the same period in 2023, according to figures published by the Cypriot Ministry of Interior.
In an interview with the British newspaper 'The Guardian', Ioannou said that the arrival of boats carrying Syrian migrants from the Lebanese coast was incessant and that the island’s leaders would discuss in Beirut the possibility of offering further technical assistance to Lebanon to combat the flow of illegal Syrian migrants.
Christodoulides, who is also the head of the island’s government, will be received at 9:30 AM in the Governmental Palace for a meeting with Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati. On Sunday, he discussed the issue with the President of the European Union (EU), Ursula von der Leyen, in Athens. Nicosia is seeking Brussels’ help in resolving the issue.
On Tuesday, the Cypriot President had already called on the European Union to take stricter measures to halt the influx of illegal migrants, the majority of whom are Syrian, from Lebanon.
In his interview with The Guardian, Ioannou said that he was convinced that Lebanon should benefit from financial aid from the EU, similar to the aid granted to Egypt (in March, the EU concluded a 7.4-billion-euro pact with Egypt in exchange for a reduction in the flow of refugees to Europe).
The Cypriot Minister of Interior also said that the island was increasing its capacity to receive refugees with EU funds but also wanted Brussels to consider declaring parts of Syria safe for repatriation as part of a wider re-evaluation of migration policies.
“Refugees are misinformed by smuggling networks and don’t know that Cyprus is not part of the Schengen area (the European area where border controls are abolished). They think that, once here, they’ll be able to take the train to Berlin.”
The Caretaker Prime Minister, Najib Mikati, expressed surprise on Thursday at the start of a diplomatic crisis with Cyprus over this issue, adding that he had asked his Cypriot counterpart to put pressure on the European Union to help Lebanon repatriate illegal migrants.
Last week, 15 boats carrying 800 people made the 10-hour journey from Lebanon. Most of the passengers were young men, but there were also 100 unaccompanied children for whom the Cypriot government had to provide guardianship, according to the Cypriot minister.
According to The Guardian, more than 2,000 people crossed the sea corridor between Lebanon and Cyprus in the first quarter of 2024, compared with 78 in the same period in 2023, according to figures published by the Cypriot Ministry of Interior.
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