Cyprus says it wants to consider repatriating Syrian refugees to their country, as it continues to be overwhelmed with record numbers of people arriving on its shores. 

More than 1,000 people -- mostly Syrians -- have disembarked in Cyprus on boats from Lebanon since the beginning of April, against a backdrop of heightened tensions in the Middle East.

The country said on May 17 that it was part of a group of at least eight EU countries who shared the idea of changing Syria’s status in certain areas of the country.

Also read: Cyprus seeks help from EU as surge of Syrian migrant arrivals from Lebanon continues

EU seeking new solutions to migration

Cypriot Interior Minister Constantinos Ioannou said in a statement that after 13 years of conflict in Syria, "it is time for the European Union to redefine its position."

"Stability in the country has not been fully restored," he stressed but added that "we must speed up the process and take all the necessary measures to create the conditions that would allow people to return to Syria."

Also read: Syrian migrants describe ordeal between Lebanon and Cyprus

The Mediterranean island nation, the EU member state closest to Syria, also hosted a conference for states that support this proposal. The other participants were Austria, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Greece, Italy, Malta and Poland.

This happened merely days after the EU gave the green light to the Pact on Migration and Asylum -- a sweeping reform to tighten immigration controls in Europe in the coming years.

The eight countries are part of a wider group of 15 EU member states, which have called for exploring "new solutions" to address the migration issue, including the idea of transferring migrants to third countries.

Also read: Austria expresses wish to adopt UK-like Rwanda policy, backed by 14 EU members

Financial support for Lebanon

Cyprus has become a preferred destination for Syrian refugees, which is reflected in the fact that arrivals have risen sharply in recent months. 

To stem this influx, the Cypriot government has stepped up its maritime patrols and has suspended the processing of Syrian asylum applications, effectively refusing the provision of benefits and welfare services to new arrivals.

Ioannou has meanwhile called for increased financial support for Lebanon -- a transit country for many of the migrants making their way to Cyprus from Syria. 

The Middle Eastern nation is mired in an unprecedented economic crisis and is facing instability in the face of growing hostilities across the region. 

"If Lebanon collapses, the consequences for the EU as a whole will be incalculable," he warned, referring to a potential transformation of Lebanon from being primarily a transit country for refugees and migrants to perhaps becoming a country of origin.

Also read: On Lebanon's Syria Street, a deceptive calm prevails

Lebanon hosts around two million refugees from neighboring Syria already, which is also putting a strain on its coffers. 

In early May, the EU announced 1 billion euros in aid to support Lebanon's "socio-economic stability", while calling on the country to cooperate more in the fight against illegal immigration to Europe.

This comes as the leader of the Hezbollah terrorist group, Hassan Nasrallah, whose influence in Lebanon is growing, called on the Beirut government to "open the sea" to migrant boats.

Nasrallah says he wants to put pressure on Europe this way and stop the government in Beirut from assisting the EU.

Also read: EU-Lebanon aid package bad news for Syrian refugees?

Record number of deportations

To reduce the number of asylum seekers in Cyprus, the government has also decided to focus on deportations of failed asylum seekers. 

In the first four months of 2024, it expelled 3,337 migrants from the island nation. In the same period in 2023, Cyprus had recorded only 2,348 expulsions.

According to official statements, these deportations include forced expulsions, voluntary returns and relocations, typically of North African and sub-Saharan African nationals, as well as of Bangladeshis and Egyptians, whose countries of origin are deemed to be safe.

However, Syrian nationals -- much like Afghans -- can presently now be expelled from the country this way due to the political instability in their home countries.

According to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), almost 27,000 asylum seekers were awaiting a response to their asylum requests from Cypriot authorities by the end of September 2023.

The previous year saw similar numbers of applications, making Cypriot the EU member state with the highest per capita rate of people seeking protection.

Also read: Germany received most asylum applications in 2023 – more than France and Spain combined

This article was mostly based on an article originally written in French