Competent ministries presented on Friday to the President of the Republic Nikos Christodoulides data in relation to the recent migration flows, during a meeting of the National Security Council (NSC), chaired by President Christodoulides, and an exchange of views took place on developments in the region, Government Spokesperson Constantinos Letymbiotis said.

In  statements following the meeting, which was held with the participation of the Ministers of Foreign Affairs, Defence, Justice and Public Order, the Chief of the National Guard, the Head of the Cyprus Intelligence Service and the National Security Advisor, and asked about the government's major concerns, Letymbiotis noted that the Council will be in continuous session, adding that it is not a matter of concern since "the role of the NSC is to constantly assess the data and to have the required exchange of views as to how to assess that data."

Asked if there was any change in security measures, the Spokesperson replied in the negative, saying that "an evaluation of the data" took place. He added that a presentation was made "to the President of the Republic, by each competent ministry, of the data at their disposal".

Asked whether the government is concerned about the possibility of a new flare-up in the Middle East in relation to Iran and strikes on Israeli targets in Cyprus, Letymbiotis said that the government has no such information, adding that "what we said from the very first moment after October 7 (and the Hamas attack), and this is the call we are making internationally, is that there should be no escalation of this crisis to the wider region."

Asked in what way Cyprus is threatened, the Government Spokesperson said that "the whole region is threatened," adding that "any escalation, particularly in our region, is something that will affect the security of the wider region."

"We, as the Republic of Cyprus, from the very first moment have been making this call internationally," he said, adding that "we have seen recently, due to this situation in the region, the increased migration flows and we have been focusing our efforts on managing the issue”. He also noted that "we are constantly in the process of evaluating all the facts on a daily basis."

Asked whether there is any news in relation to the invitation extended by President Christodoulides to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to jointly visit Lebanon, Letymbiotis said that there is nothing to be announced at this stage, adding that "the President's office is constantly in contact with the office of the President of the European Commission, this is something that is on the table, something that the President himself has announced and when there are specific developments they will be officially announced."