|Published on: 29th January 2026|Categories: News|
The Cypriot Presidency of the Council of the EU (January-June 2026) comes at a pivotal moment in the ongoing reform of the EU’s policies in the areas of migration and asylum, culminating with the entry into action of the Pact on Migration and Asylum on 12 June.
According to its programme, the Cypriot Presidency will prioritise the following migration- and asylum-related issues:
- Ensuring the ‘coherent, fair and effective implementation’ of the Pact on Migration and Asylum
- Promoting ‘a more efficient, coherent and balanced’ European returns system
- Concluding negotiations on the safe third country concept and the EU list of safe countries of origin
- Advancing the ‘efficiency’ of the external dimension of migration ‘based on a “whole of route” approach and respecting geographical balance’, including through ‘mutually beneficial strategic partnerships with key international partners on a “more for more” basis’.
In addition, it has committed to ‘initiate and conclude’ negotiations on the planned EU directive on migrant smuggling and to promote the ‘swift implementation’ of the Pact for the Mediterranean.
On 22 January, the Cypriot Presidency hosted an informal Justice and Home Affairs (JHA) Council meeting in Nicosia. EU interior ministers discussed “sustainable approaches to return and reintegration”, Syria and Afghanistan, and the functioning of the Schengen Area. Other high-level migration- and asylum-related events in the coming months include:
Relevant ECRE publications
See also
