The creation of the Deputy Ministry of Migration, the return of irregular migrants, the better management of Migrant Accommodation Centres and the role of border guards, among other issues, were discussed by Interior Minister Mr.
The meeting, convened at the Ministry of Interior by Mr. Ioannou, was held in the presence of officials, including the Chief of Police and the Directors General of the two ministries.
The meeting, convened at the Ministry of Interior by Mr. Ioannou, was held in the presence of officials, including the Chief of Police and the Directors General of the two ministries.
The meeting, convened at the Ministry of Interior by Mr. Ioannou, was held in the presence of officials, including the Chief of Police and the Directors General of the two ministries.
After the meeting, in statements to reporters, the Minister said that the aim of the meeting was "to have a coordination on issues of cooperation between the two Ministries on migration."
"The role of the Ministry of Justice and the Police in handling migration issues is essential," which is why it was deemed appropriate to hold this meeting, he said.
The Minister of Interior informed that they have discussed "issues that primarily and mainly concern the proposed bill for the creation of a Deputy Ministry of Immigration with the involvement of the Aliens and Immigration Service."
The Minister of Interior informed that they have discussed "issues that primarily and mainly concern the proposed bill for the creation of a Deputy Ministry of Immigration with the involvement of the Aliens and Immigration Service". The government's goal, based on the timetable set, is to submit the bill to Parliament by early June, he said, explaining that so far the plan is on schedule. He noted that although all the individual issues related to the bill had been agreed upon, there were several outstanding issues that needed to be discussed and resolved.
Regarding the border guards, he said that during the meeting he was briefed on their training, while their involvement and role in the surveillance of the Green Line was discussed. There will be another meeting next week to finalise individual issues, he added.
Referring to the Return Office, he noted that "it has an essential role in the voluntary return of migrants". High targets have been set, which, he said, need some further strengthening to be achieved. "We have discussed with both the Minister and the Chief of Police some other needs, and more ways of communication and functioning between the responsible persons, so that we can increase the returns and reduce the flows," the Interior Minister explained.
He added that the meeting also addressed the "better management of the Accommodation Centres".
For her part, Ms Koukkidi - Prokopiou in her statements spoke of a "common goal". "There is interdependence between the two ministries and it is very important to have synergy, to have a common philosophy in dealing with a very important issue, such as migration," the Justice Minister said.
After describing the meeting as productive, she informed that "many more will follow until we end up with the creation of the Deputy Ministry of Immigration."
"We as the Ministry of Justice, and of course speaking on behalf of the Police, are always at the disposal of the Ministry of Interior for operational issues arising from the immigration policy of the Republic of Cyprus. And I am optimistic that because the channels of communication are open, the relationship is productive, we will be successful in achieving our goals, which are of course high and difficult."
"When there is cooperation, everything can be achieved," the Minister said."
Asked how to reduce the flows and shorten the procedures for examining asylum applications, the Interior Minister replied that this would be possible through a "combination of measures". He referred to the surveillance of the green line with the activation of border guards, which, he said, will be a deterrent measure, and will also help in the arrest of traffickers.
"As the Ministry of Interior and as a government, we believe that in order to reduce the flows substantially, this has to do with Turkey and the instrumentalisation of the migration issue by Turkey." He recalled that 95% of irregular migrants come by air from Istanbul to the occupied territories and then cross to the free areas.
He added that "we are very much investing in the Eastern Mediterranean Action Plan", informing that this was the purpose of his trip last week to Brussels, where he briefed officials on the positions of the Cypriot side "on what should be in the action plan."
He added that "we are very much investing in the Eastern Mediterranean Action Plan", informing that this was the purpose of his trip last week to Brussels, where he briefed officials on the positions of the Cypriot side "on what should be in the action plan".
"I was pleased to be told that there is agreement, at least on the actions we are proposing and what they were working on," he said, describing the development as "very good news". Regarding the timeframe for the implementation or publication of the Action Plan, "the aim is for this to be done at the next Council of Chiefs which is in June, but this will also depend on the outcome of the elections in Turkey," the Interior Minister said.
The Minister reiterated that he is investing in the Action Plan which is a series of actions, that there is a meeting with the EU and that he hopes for its immediate implementation.
In response to another question, Ioannou noted that "27 new asylum examiners have started work, what we had announced. In May another 16 will be recruited by the European Asylum Agency. In short, the number of examiners will be doubled, so we are already in a position from today to examine a much larger number of asylum applications."
Referring to the appeals to the Administrative Court, he added that after consultation with the President of the Supreme Court, some additional arrangements have been made and the rate of examination has been substantially increased there as well. "At the moment they are examining many more applications than they are receiving, so they are able to examine applications that were pending," the Minister explained. "We are on a very, very good track. We have already taken measures that were also a pre-election commitment of the President of the Republic and they are being implemented," the Interior Minister concluded.
(EF/AF)
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