CYPnaval 2015 Conference e-Booklet enhancing the protection of Blue Economy | Page 14

Welcome address
by the Permanent Secretary,
Ministry of Justice & Public Orders of the Republic of Cyprus
Mr Andreas Mylonas

Honorable Ambassadors,
Colleague Permanent Secretary of Ministry of Defense,
Distinguished guests, Ladies and gentlemen
It is a pleasure for me to be here, to speak on behalf of the Ministry of Justice and Public Order on the
opening day of the 2nd CYPnaval Conference.
The importance of Maritime Operations and especially Search and Rescue Operations could not be
stressed enough. Such operations in the Mediterranean, have been at the centre of international
attention in recent years and especially in recent months. We have witnessed desperate people falling
victims of unscrupulous traffickers and risk their lives in an attempt to escape our war-torn, politically
unstable and poverty stricken neighbouring countries.
The challenges that arise from such instability are not only numerous, but also highly complex. Cyprus,
as a contracting state to the 1979 Search and Rescue Convention, is responsible for providing Search
and Rescue Services by means of coordinating mobile units and surveillance activities in the Eastern
Mediterranean, for an area of almost 20 times the size of the island.
This responsibility has created throughout the years a tradition of effective cooperation among all the
national authorities involved in search and rescue. The Ministry of Justice and Public Order, as one of
these authorities, provides appropriate human recourses and mobile units to cover both Air and Sea
Surface Operations, including four fully equipped helicopters with their crews and 18 surface mobile
units capable of responding to different incidents at sea. The presence of qualified crew twenty four
hours a day, seven days a week, ensures a quick response to any SAR incident.
The systematic training provided in cooperation with the Rescue Coordination Center and other
National Authorities, has given additional experience and knowhow to the crews of our helicopters,
rescue boats and patrol vessels. Furthermore, it is important to point out the importance of
international cooperation that has been established, which is the key to success, especially for a small
country like Cyprus with limited resources, but with a massive area of responsibility.
Since our accession to the European Union, Cyprus Police Officers dealing with the protection of the
External Borders are called upon to work in a multinational environment, cooperating on a daily basis
with Border Guards from other Member States either in the field of information or in joint operations.
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