There are a total of 200,000 legal migrants in Cyprus, Migration Deputy Minister Nicholas Ioannides said on Thursday, as he addressed the House interior committee.

He said that an additional 30,000 people are currently in receipt of international asylum, while around 13,500 asylum applications are pending.

Regarding irregular migration, he said that a total of 12,029 irregular migrants departed the island last year, and that as such, the ratio of arrivals to departures stands at around one to five, with irregular arrivals having decreased by 92 per cent since 2022.

“Our central goal is to transform migration from a problem we previously had with uncontrolled flows into a solution. That is, to reduce illegal flows, to increase returns, but at the same time, to emphasise the developmental role of migration,” he said.

He added that “at core” of his deputy ministry’s policy is “always the protection of human rights”, before saying that the European Union’s migration pact “largely reflects our own policies, to provide protection to those entitled to it, but at the same time, to safeguard the vital interests of frontline states such as the Republic of Cyprus”.

Additionally, he pointed out that Cyprus has recently amended its law on refugees, thus allowing asylum to be revoked “in the event of delinquent behaviour”, with this being done “in accordance with the criteria set by international and European law”.

Regarding Cyprus’ hard infrastructure, he said that upgrades to the Pournara reception centre were “100-per-cent” funded by the EU, and that, together with the migrant detention centre in Limnes, “Cyprus’ capacity for returns has increased sixfold”.

On the matter of Syrian nationals, he said that more than 5,200 Syrians have withdrawn their asylum applications or renounced their asylum status, and that “most” of them have returned to their country of origin.

Additionally, he said, almost 2,000 asylum applications filed by Syrian nationals have been rejected, with the regime led by Bashar al-Assad having been overthrown almost 20 months ago.

He also pointed out to MPs the new scheme through which Syrian nationals can receive cash payments from the Cypriot government if they renounce their asylum status and return to their country of origin.

On the matter of those migrants who will stay on the island, he said that “we place particular emphasis on learning the Greek language and developing skills”, adding that “we want to streamline the procedures” for legal migration to occur.

He was then asked by Alma MP Michalis Paraskevas about the “exploitation of migrants by Turkey”, and said that his deputy ministry is in “close cooperation” with both the National Guard and the police to ensure the monitoring of the Green Line.

To this end, he said, mobile cameras are used and “patrols are carried out along the Green Line to tackle illegal migrant smuggling rings”.