The Green Line is not a border and we do not want it to be a border, Deputy Minister of Migration and International Protection Nicholas Ioannides said on Wednesday, adding that  the policy of the Republic of Cyprus is not to accept migrant flows via the Green Line and that the goal is not to make the Green Line a migrant route.

In statements after a visit he paid to the Reception and Accommodation Center for International Protection Applicants in Kofinou and the “Limnes” Accommodation Center and asked about the situation regarding the migrants in the Un-controlled buffer zone, Ioannides replied that "we have to make it clear that we do not want to be in conflict with either the UN peacekeeping force in Cyprus (UNFICYP) or the UN High Commission for Refugees, so we are in a dialogue with them to solve this problem".

He explained that "this is not only about the people who are currently in the buffer zone, it is the wider approach of the flows from Turkey, through the occupied territories to the free areas."

"The Republic of Cyprus has taken the decision that it will not accept flows via the Green Line, since we have managed to achieve zero flows by sea and we do not want to create a new passage," he said.

Our strategy, our policy, he continued, "is to achieve the goal of having no flows via the Green Line and that is why we are in dialogue with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, to solve the problem of the people who are already there but also to regulate the situation in general, so that the Green Line does not become a migrant route."

Asked whether the situation with the situation in the Green Line will continue indefinitely, given that there are several points through which migrants can pass, or whether a solution will eventually be found, Ioannides said that "it is not a passage, exactly because the authorities of the Republic do not allow the passage of these people". "We have the Green Line regulation that allows us to effectively monitor the Green Line in relation to illegal migration," he added.

He reiterated that "right now, we are in a dialogue to see how the problem regarding these people can be resolved. We are not ignoring the humanitarian aspect, so we are providing assistance, whatever these people need. However, we must balance between our policy, our position that we will not allow the passage of migrants, while on the other hand keeping in mind the humanitarian aspect," he said.

Asked whether the Republic has asked or will ask for the help of the European Union on this issue, the Deputy Minister of Migration replied that "the EU at the moment does not have any involvement and does not need to. The important thing is that there is no intervention by the EU to put pressure on the Republic of Cyprus, because they understand the situation."

He also added that "the Green Line is not a border, we never want it to be a border, it is a peculiar situation, we have a military occupation and we have to keep this fact in mind, that it is not a border".

"This is not what happens in other European countries where migrants come via the borders with other countries, we have a military occupation, we have other rules and we have to take them into account to deal with the situation," he noted.

Referring to his visit to the accommodation center in Kofinou, he said that "I wanted to see personally the situation at the accommodation center in Kofinou but also to see the progress of works in ‘Limnes’”.

He added that in Kofinou "there are decent living conditions for the people staying there, they are asylum seekers who are waiting for their applications to be examined and they stay until their asylum applications are examined. The conditions are very good, there is air conditioning and food, the little children go to school and that is very important, we care about the well-being of these people."

On his visit to the “Limnes” Accommodation Centre, he said that a huge project is under construction, it is a 1,000-bed center that can accommodate 1,000 people and a pre-departure center with 800 places."

He explained that "the Accommodation Centers are not permanent homes for these people, they are centers that are created for asylum seekers, once they submit their application and are entitled to stay in the Republic until their application is examined".

He also described as very important the pre-departure centre "which will be able to accommodate up to 800 people for the purpose of their repatriation. This center is not about permanent residence either, but a place where those persons who are illegally in the Republic of Cyprus will be detained with a view to being deported," he added

"It is very important that the Republic of Cyprus makes an effort to meet its international obligations but at the same time to preserve legality", stressed Ioannides, adding that "already this year we have more returns of foreigners than flows."

He also noted that "the creation of infrastructure contributes to this effort to give emphasis only to those foreigners who are entitled to remain in the Republic after their application has been examined. If their application is examined and rejected then they will have to be repatriated."

We consider, he continued, "these projects to be very important and we hope that they will be completed soon so that the Republic of Cyprus can implement its immigration policy."

The Deputy Minister was asked whether, due to the situation in the Middle East region, an increase in migration flows is expected and whether the Republic is ready and has the infrastructure to receive these people.

The Republic of Cyprus, he replied, "has taken advantage of the experience it has gained unfortunately, due to the crises in our region. There are the National Plans and there is also the National Plan ‘Nafkratis’ which concerns the Deputy Ministry of Migration and International Protection".

"We have a planning, our officials are experienced, they have knowledge of the practices that should be followed, we hope that the situation will not escalate. We will not have what many people expect, but if any conflict occurs and if there are migratory flows, then we will put in place the national planning so that we can deal with the situation", he concluded.

According to UNHCR Cyprus, at the beginning of July there were two locations in the UN Buffer Zone where a total of 37 asylum seekers were staying, twenty-five (25) in Aglantzia and twelve (12) in Akaki, including 8 children in total, 4 in Aglantzia and 4 in Akaki.

As regards the origin of the asylum seekers, UNHCR Cyprus said that people staying in Aglantzia come from Afghanistan, Iran, Sudan and Cameroon, while most people staying in Akaki come from Syria.

The UN-controlled buffer zone is a 180-kilometre line spanning across the island and took its final shape after the 1974 invasion of Turkey and the occupation of 37% of the island’s territory.