Completed late last night the Extraordinary Council of Home Affairs Ministers in Brussels during which the Action Plan for the Central Mediterranean presented by the European Commission was discussed, in the light of the latest developments and the new migrant trafficking routes that have emerged.
Cyprus welcomed[/B] the submission of the Plan, indicating that it can be a basis for discussion for concrete actions towards third countries in order to curb migratory flows, noting however that it should not replace efforts for a common European Pact on Asylum and Migration. At the same time, as a Ministry, we expressed our concern about the new methodology that traffickers seem to be opting for with the transport, by commercial vessels, of irregular migrants, which the proposed Action Plan must manage effectively.
Within the Council, the European Commission was requested or the immediate elaboration of a similar targeted Action Plan for the Eastern Mediterranean and particularly for Cyprus and Greece, with concrete measures to stem the flows from Turkey which, in the case of Cyprus, continues to methodically and systematically channel irregular migrants through the Green Line.
On the other hand, the Vice-President of the European Commission, Margaritis Schinas, pointed out, among other things, that the Commission has already made a number of representations to Turkey, asking it to comply with the EU-Turkey Declaration of 2016 and to ease the pressure on Cyprus.
The discussion on the Action Plan will continue at the upcoming regular Internal Affairs Council scheduled for 08 December 2022 in Brussels.
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