19/08/2021 09:58
Interior Minister Nikos Nouris stressed on Wednesday that the EU response to the instrumentalisation of immigrants should be strict and clear.
The Minister, who was speaking at the extraordinary EU Informal Interior Ministers meeting, held online, on the situation in Lithuania and the promotion of illegal immigrants to its territories through the border with Belarus, said that safeguarding the integrity of the EU`s external borders is the shared responsibility of all EU countries. He also welcomed the other partners` support for Lithuania, saying that no member state should and cannot be left alone in addressing such a problem.
According to a press release issued by the Ministry of the Interior, Nouris said that the instrumentalisation of immigrants from a third country - in this case Turkey - which assists Belarus in promoting migrants at the border with Lithuania, is something that Cyprus has strongly experienced in recent years. He stressed that the EU response to that should be strict and clear.
Nouris expressed Cyprus` solidarity and its readiness to assist with know-how as there is no room for any other sort of aid since Cyprus is faced with unprecedented flows especially via Turkey and the Turkish occupied areas of the island for five years now.
The Minister also expressed Cyprus` concern over the crisis in Aghanistan and asked for a decisive financial aid on behalf of international organisations like the UNHCR, so that they can organise camps in neighboring countries to control immigration flows.