Egypt, Cyprus Agree to Strengthen Military Cooperation

Askar met Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades, in the presence of the Cypriot Minister of Defense, the Commander of the Cyprus National Guard, and a number of officials and senior leaders of the armed forces. (Egypt’s military spokesperson)
Askar met Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades, in the presence of the Cypriot Minister of Defense, the Commander of the Cyprus National Guard, and a number of officials and senior leaders of the armed forces. (Egypt’s military spokesperson)
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Egypt, Cyprus Agree to Strengthen Military Cooperation

Askar met Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades, in the presence of the Cypriot Minister of Defense, the Commander of the Cyprus National Guard, and a number of officials and senior leaders of the armed forces. (Egypt’s military spokesperson)
Askar met Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades, in the presence of the Cypriot Minister of Defense, the Commander of the Cyprus National Guard, and a number of officials and senior leaders of the armed forces. (Egypt’s military spokesperson)

Lieutenant-General Osama Askar, Chief of Staff of the Egyptian Armed Forces, concluded on Saturday an official visit to Cyprus, where he discussed the means to consolidate military cooperation.

The military spokesman for the Egyptian Armed Forces said that Askar met Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades in the presence of the Cypriot Minister of Defense, the Commander of the Cyprus National Guard, and a number of officials and senior leaders of the armed forces.

In a statement, the spokesman said that the Cypriot president praised the relations with Egypt and the convergence of views between the two countries, especially with regard to the development of bilateral military cooperation.

Anastasiades praised Egypt's influential and effective role, which he said aims to achieve security and stability in the Middle East and the region.

The Egyptian military spokesman said that Askar met with Charalambos Petrides, Minister of Defense of Cyprus. He stressed to him “the need to continue coordination between Egypt and Cyprus to achieve more cooperation in the defense and security fields, joint exercises, and exchange of experiences between the two countries’ armed forces.”

Petrides, for his part, pointed to the “importance of coordination and joint action to face challenges, in order to achieve stability in the region.”

The visit saw a session of talks between the Egyptian and Cypriot delegations, which touched on a number of issues of common interest.



More Than 50,000 Refugees Return to Syria from Türkiye

A boy cycles past buildings which were damaged during the war between opposition forces and the Assad regime, in the town of Harasta, on the outskirts of Damascus, Syria, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)
A boy cycles past buildings which were damaged during the war between opposition forces and the Assad regime, in the town of Harasta, on the outskirts of Damascus, Syria, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)
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More Than 50,000 Refugees Return to Syria from Türkiye

A boy cycles past buildings which were damaged during the war between opposition forces and the Assad regime, in the town of Harasta, on the outskirts of Damascus, Syria, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)
A boy cycles past buildings which were damaged during the war between opposition forces and the Assad regime, in the town of Harasta, on the outskirts of Damascus, Syria, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)

Türkiye’s Interior Affairs Minister said Thursday that a total of 52,622 refugees have returned to Syria from Türkiye in the first month following Bashar Assad’s removal from power on Dec. 8.
Speaking at the Cilvegozu border crossing between Türkiye and Syria on Thursday, Ali Yerlikaya said that more than 40,000 Syrians had returned with family members while some 11,000 individuals crossed into Syria alone.
“The voluntary, safe, honorable and regular returns have started to increase,” Yerlikaya said.
Türkiye has hosted the largest number of Syrian refugees since the outbreak of the Syrian civil war in 2011 — more than 3.8 million at its peak in 2022.