Cypriot Prime Minister Nikos Christodoulides is scheduled to meet European Union (EU) President Ursula von der Leyen in Athens on Sunday, before his trip to Beirut on Monday. On the agenda: the influx of Syrian migrants from Lebanon. Nicosia wants to seek Brussels’ help in resolving this issue.
In an interview with the British newspaper The Guardian on Sunday, the Cypriot Minister of Interior, Constantinos 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 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) and think that once here, they can take the train to Berlin.”
Ioannou added that boat landings showed no sign of abating, and that the island’s leaders would also discuss the possibility of offering further technical assistance to combat the flow of irregular migrants when they visit Lebanon on Monday.
Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides is expected in Lebanon on Monday at the head of a ministerial delegation including Interior Minister Konstantinos Kombos and Foreign Minister Konstantinos Kombos.
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.
