Cypriot and Greek police aim to increase cooperation

Police chief Zacharias Chrysostomou discussed on Thursday with his Greek counterpart ways of strengthening cooperation between the two police forces in tackling terrorism, organised crime and corruption.

According to an announcement, Chrysostomou, who is in Greece on a two-day official visit, met with the Greek Police chief Constantinos Tsouvalas and they discussed enhancing cooperation on a number of issues, as part of plans to upgrade the Cypriot police force, “so that it can respond to the modern challenges in the field of policing”.

During their meeting, the two police chiefs agreed to develop the maximum possible cooperation, it said, “particularly in view that policing challenges in the wider Mediterranean region are lasting and the environment extremely demanding”.

Chrysostomou accompanied in Greece Justice Minister Ionas Nicolaou, who sought Greek expertise in establishing a coastguard in Cyprus. The two countries decided to cooperate closely on the transfer of expertise and training of the members of the Cypriot marine police “since it will be the backbone” of the coastguard, Nicolaou said.

Chrysostomou’s visit to Greece is among a series of meetings the police chief held recently with other police forces. In a recent trip to the UK, the announcement said, Chrysostomou promoted cooperation with British law enforcement and citizen protection organisations.

The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.