According to the draft bill which is expected to be approved at committee level within the month, before being forwarded to the plenary for a vote, the Parliament is expected to approve the Commission's proposal, according to the Cypriot news agency. The deadline for tabling amendments to the parliamentary committee's draft is March 23.
In particular, the proposal concerns the transfer of Schengen Information System (SIS) data to Cyprus so that it can be implemented and enable the Commission to verify whether the country is implementing the relevant provisions correctly.
As pointed out in the explanatory memorandum of the rapporteur of the report, MEP Peter Cofford (Identity and Democracy, Denmark), until the full implementation of the Schengen acquis in Cyprus and the lifting of controls at the Green Line (meaning the solution of the Cyprus problem) restrictions will apply in relation to the use of the SIS.
The rapporteur also notes that it is important that due to increased migration flows the Cypriot authorities are able to verify in the SIS the information related to the arrivals of migrants and asylum seekers via the Green Line.
However, he adds, the future accession of Cyprus to the Schengen area should be assessed independently from the participation in the SIS, based on the possibility of maintaining security at the external borders.
Amendment of reference to "internal borders"
The draft, CBC understands, included a reference to the Green Line as an "internal border" in the Republic of Cyprus, as part of the justification of the rapporteur's rationale.
Both the MEP of the European People's Party (DISY) Loukas Fourlas (who is a member of LIBE) and the MEP of the Left (AKEL) George Georgiou, interjected to the rapporteur noting that the correct wording regarding the Green Line would be to refer to crossing points between areas controlled by the Republic of Cyprus and areas where the government does not exercise effective control, based on the wording of the Green Line Regulation.
According to Cypriots, the rapporteur is said to have taken these remarks into account and to be oriented towards its amendment.
Meanwhile, during the LIBE meeting, an exchange of views with Commissioner for Home Affairs Ilva Johansson and Minister of Interior Nikos Nouris (via videoconference) was scheduled in relation to migration flows to Cyprus. However, the discussion was postponed to a later stage for scheduling reasons.
Source: CNA
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