Petrides calls for support from EU counterparts to tackle mass influx of migrants

Interior Minister Constantinos Petrides has called for urgent practical support to Cyprus through the refugee relocation program, as the situation over the past few months “far exceeds both its fair share and the country`s ability to manage the flows effectively”.

Petrides issued the plea during his intervention to the EU Home Affairs Council on Friday in Luxembourg. He called for the support of partners and institutions, “with the aim of burden-sharing, in accordance with the principle of solidarity, as a fundamental pillar of the European family.”

The minister briefed his counterparts on the “new mass influx of asylum applicants from Turkey” through the north and by sea, stressing “the total lack of cooperation on the part of the Turkish authorities towards the principles of the Republic of Cyprus, despite the efforts made by our side”.

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.