The strengthening of cooperation between the Republic of Cyprus and the UN's International Organization for Migration (IOM), particularly in the repatriation of migrants, was discussed by Interior Minister Nikos Nouris and the Regional Director of the Organization for the EU, Norway, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.Β., Ola Henrikson. With his visit to Cyprus today, Mr. Henrikson signalled the Agency's intention to strengthen and expand its cooperation with the Government of Cyprus.
As the Minister of Interior said in his statements after the meeting, welcoming Mr. Ola Henrikson. Henrikson, this is the first visit to Cyprus, during which they had the opportunity to discuss "the many problems that the country is facing, as well as the management that Cyprus has done on the issue of Ukrainian refugees who have arrived in Cyprus."
Mr. Nouris explained that the IOM "is a very important organization, which cooperates fully with the Ministry of Interior on migration issues and especially on return issues and the various social integration programs."
The Minister said that during the meeting the needs that Cyprus has in terms of efforts to manage the migration issue were raised, on the one hand to limit the flows through the Green Line from Turkey, and on the other hand to increase the number of migrants who are repatriated, which, he explained, falls squarely within the scope of the IOM, since under its umbrella there are many programmes for the voluntary return of migrants to their countries of origin.
The aim for the Cypriot government, Mr. Nouris stressed, is to reach the target "to improve the numbers of returns, with the support of the EU and various organisations such as the IOM or FRONTEX". He underlined that "we have declared our readiness to extend our cooperation between us in order to help Cyprus in dealing with this problem", specifically with regard to the financial aspect, because in the rest, he said, there are no problems. Henrikson "for his understanding and cooperation, as well as the representative of the Organisation in Cyprus, Mrs Koudouna" for what he called the excellent cooperation in the various programmes.
For his part, Ola Henrikson said that a constructive discussion took place during the meeting and recalled that the good cooperation between the Republic of Cyprus and the IOM is long-standing. He explained that the role of the IOM focuses in particular on issues of return, integration and reception, especially of unaccompanied minors. He conveyed to the minister the IOM's intention to "strengthen and expand cooperation where there is a need."
"We understand the challenges that Cyprus faces due to the large number of arrivals in relation to its population," he said, referring to the topics covered during the meeting, adding that the management of refugees from Ukraine arriving in Cyprus was also on the table.
Responding to a reporter's question regarding actions to prevent the arrival of migrants through the Green Line, Mr. Henrikson said that this issue is not among the main objectives of his visit, as the role of the IOM is mainly to provide assistance to governments to ensure an orderly and smooth management of migratory flows. Nouris explained that the financial aspect of cooperation is determined according to the needs of the Republic and stressed that "we are particularly looking forward to cooperation in terms of returns."
Mr Henrikson explained that most IOM actions in EU member states are financed by European funds or shared management funds. "In this part we see opportunities and of course we very much appreciate the cooperation with the Cypriot Government to implement relevant programmes." Finally, he stressed that "it is the needs of the Government that guide us to apply for funding."
Source: CNA
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