Cyprus’s expertise in dialogue, negotiation and diplomacy will prove vital as the island steers the EU’s agenda through the first half of 2026, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said during a College of Commissioners visit to Limassol on 15 January.
“I am very happy to be back in Cyprus,” von der Leyen told President Nikos Christodoulides. “Your country stands at the crossroads of continents and cultures. This gives Cypriots a unique expertise in dialogue, negotiation and diplomacy. Assets that will matter greatly as you steer our common agenda in the first half of 2026.”
The Cyprus presidency takes charge as the EU navigates “turbulent geopolitical waters” under the theme “An autonomous Union open to the world”, focusing on security and defence, competitiveness and decarbonisation, and democracy and partnerships.
Von der Leyen said Cyprus will play a crucial role in delivering the SAFE programme, the EU’s 150 billion euro joint procurement initiative for defence. “Yesterday, the first 8 out of 19 plans have been approved by the College,” she said. “Now it is urgent for the Council to approve these plans to allow fast disbursement.”
The Commission president said rapid Council approval could set a precedent. “If things go fast, we could set the record that from the proposal of SAFE in the College till disbursement, we just needed one year. That would be fantastic,” she said.
The SAFE programme forms part of a broader 800 billion euro mobilisation for defence that member states enabled last year to implement the Readiness Roadmap 2030. The Commission plans to present a new European security strategy during the Cyprus presidency.
Cyprus will also secure swift agreement on a 90 billion euro loan for Ukraine, von der Leyen said, with the legal proposal agreed politically at the December European Council. “Russia continues its brutal shelling” even as peace talks proceed, she said. The EU has provided 193 billion euros to Ukraine since the war began.
Cyprus will oversee delivery of ten omnibus packages worth 12 billion euros per year in burden reduction for businesses and advance negotiations on the next long-term EU budget by the end of 2026. The island will host an informal leaders’ meeting on 12 February to assess progress on the competitiveness agenda.
Von der Leyen announced that “history will be written” on Saturday when the EU signs the EU-Mercosur Partnership Agreement in Paraguay after 25 years of negotiations, creating the largest free trade zone in the world.
On migration, von der Leyen said the reduction of migrant arrivals demonstrates the effectiveness of EU-wide efforts. “I am glad that we can count on Cyprus’ experience,” she said, noting that “irregular arrivals fell by 62% in 2025 compared to 2024” in Cyprus. EU illegal border crossings fell 37 per cent in 2024, with another 26 per cent drop last year.
Cyprus has faced accusations of conducting pushbacks against migrants and asylum seekers. In July 2024, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reported that Cypriot authorities forcibly removed 25 migrants from government-controlled areas to the buffer zone, denying them access to asylum procedures. The Cypriot government denied these allegations, asserting that no such pushbacks occurred.
Additionally, in October 2024, the European Court of Human Rights ruled that Cyprus violated the rights of two Syrian asylum seekers by preventing them from applying for asylum and returning them to Lebanon without processing their claims. The court found this action amounted to degrading treatment.