Philippa Karsera visits Brussels and The Hague — We reveal the behind-the-scenes developments and what happened during the first formal Council discussion.
Two obstacles, linked to two of Cyprus’ “political specificities,” stand in the way of the island’s full accession to the Schengen area: the unresolved Cyprus problem and the presence of the British Bases.
Information obtained by Kathimerini indicates that the first issue concerns how the movement of people across the Green Line will be reflected in EU law. The second involves upgrading checks at the two crossing points within the British Bases to meet EU standards.
According to two EU diplomats, Philippa Karsera Christodoulides presented her own assessment of Cyprus’ progress toward full Schengen membership
The same information indicates that Nicosia is in contact with both the European Commission and the EU’s Legal Service in Brussels to meet the conditions that have been set.
Once these requirements are satisfied, the European Commission can submit its proposal to the Council of the EU, allowing political discussions on Cyprus’ full Schengen membership to begin among member states.
As Kathimerini understands, the first formal discussion took place on Tuesday, Sept. 15, in the Council’s Schengen Matters working party. A team of technocrats from the Cyprus Foreign Ministry attended, led by Philippa Karsera Christodoulides, head of the ministry department responsible for the issue.
According to the same information, the European Commission briefed the working party on the current state of Cyprus’ technical preparations, presenting developments in a particularly positive light.
A foreign diplomatic source told Kathimerini that the Commission outlined all the technical aspects of Cyprus’ efforts to meet the Schengen criteria, essentially supporting the country’s application for full membership in the common travel area.
According to two EU diplomats, Karsera Christodoulides then presented her own assessment of Cyprus’ progress toward full accession, securing positive comments from eight or nine member states.
The group reportedly included Italy, Greece, Spain, Malta, Bulgaria and Romania. They congratulated Cyprus on its technical progress and its successful completion of 120 milestones and prerequisites.
They also urged Nicosia to continue its efforts to meet the remaining conditions set by Brussels, both in relation to the Green Line and the British Bases.
Well-informed sources told Kathimerini that the Netherlands was among the many member states that did not speak during the Schengen Matters meeting. The Netherlands is considered one of the three or four countries taking the toughest line on Schengen issues, alongside Austria, which also did not take a position.
The Netherlands had raised political objections to the full accession of Bulgaria and Romania, despite the positive technical assessments both countries had received from the Commission. As a result, their accession to the common area was delayed by more than 13 years.
Against the backdrop of The Hague’s well-known position on Schengen matters, Kathimerini understands that Karsera Christodoulides and members of her team held meetings in the Dutch capital last week.
Their apparent aim was to explain Cyprus’ position and secure Dutch support for the island’s full entry into the Schengen area.
During those meetings, the Foreign Ministry team reportedly focused on Cyprus’ “political specificities” and sought to provide assurances that Turkey’s occupation of part of the island and the presence of the British Bases would not disrupt Cyprus’ smooth participation in Schengen.
Reliable sources said the Netherlands is reviewing the Commission’s technical assessment and will also wait for the two outstanding requirements involving the Green Line and the crossing points controlled by the British Bases to be addressed.
More specifically, according to an internal Foreign Ministry document seen by Kathimerini, Brussels has set the following two conditions for Nicosia:
“A legal instrument providing the requested legal certainty and consistency concerning the existing checks at the Green Line, without creating obstacles to the free movement of all Cypriots and their family members within Cyprus, and including provisions prohibiting any illegal movement within the Schengen area.”
“Operational arrangements to ensure a comparable level of checks at crossing points managed by the British Bases Police, in close cooperation with the Cyprus Police.”
To implement these two conditions, the Foreign Ministry has established two separate teams of experts. As previously noted, they are already working with the European Commission and the EU’s Legal Service.
At the same time, the relevant Foreign Ministry department is expected to seek talks with other countries that take a hard line on Schengen matters, following the same approach used with the Netherlands.
The ministry believes diplomatic mobilization and preparation are necessary to ensure that Cyprus’ technical readiness, as documented in the Commission report previously revealed by Kathimerini, is converted into political support and a positive Council decision on full accession.
As previously reported, an internal Foreign Ministry memorandum signed by Karsera Christodoulides recommends a “coordinated, sustained, and well-documented diplomatic effort” to ensure that Cyprus’ technical progress is “translated into a political decision” by member states, allowing them to give the green light for the island to enter the Schengen area.
Race against the presidential election clock
Nicosia is racing to secure either Cyprus’ full accession to Schengen or a specific date for full membership before the presidential election in February 2028.
It is clear that the Christodoulides administration wants to capitalize on the issue. Beyond the political gains for Cyprus—placing the country within the core group of EU member states participating in both the eurozone and Schengen—accession would make travel easier for Cypriot citizens by ending checks on journeys to and from European countries, with the exception of Ireland, which has opted out of the common area.
In that sense, Schengen membership could also become a useful campaign asset in President Nikos Christodoulides’ bid for re-election.
As Kathimerini has repeatedly reported, however, this will not be easy because of Cyprus’ political specificities.
Several member states take a hard line and demand explanations and safeguards. In other cases, such demands have caused lengthy delays in countries’ efforts to obtain full Schengen membership.
Croatia, despite receiving a positive technical assessment from the Commission, needed more than three years to persuade the Council and secure the unanimous approval of member states.
The process was even more difficult for Romania and Bulgaria. Although they also had positive Commission assessments in hand, they waited more than 13 years to join, mainly because of objections from the Netherlands and Austria centered on corruption concerns.
A hard border along the Green Line remains a grey area
Nicosia appears convinced that Cyprus’ full participation in Schengen “will not bring about any change whatsoever on the ground” in how movement across the Green Line is managed.
However, a source at EU headquarters told Kathimerini that “no one can currently predict with absolute certainty what position member states will take once the political discussions in the Council move into deeper waters.”
The source did not rule out the possibility that some countries could demand additional assurances and further safeguards from Nicosia.
They may seek guarantees that Cyprus’ “political specificities” will not allow irregular migrants to travel unchecked through Cypriot airports and ports to other countries in the Schengen area.
Providing such additional assurances carries risks. It could lead to increased checks along the Green Line to limit the ability of irregular migrants to enter the government-controlled areas of the Republic, which would form part of the Schengen zone.
According to the same source, the recent example of Ceuta—although it does not belong to the Schengen area—and the position taken by almost all member states, which left Spain isolated, is indicative of the prevailing mood toward irregular migration.
Nicosia nevertheless believes that Cyprus’ considerable distance from the rest of Europe, the absence of land borders, and its excellent performance in the Commission’s technical assessment create a highly favorable combination.
Cyprus has also received praise for monitoring the Green Line using reliable and technologically advanced systems.
Nicosia believes these factors can help it secure the approval of member states and a positive unanimous decision on full Schengen membership quickly and without delay.
Whether that happens will become clear during the political discussions in the Council, where the position of each member state cannot be taken for granted.
In practice, Cyprus’ political specificities are not the only factors that could influence its application. External developments, such as the situation in Ceuta and the migration crises of previous years, can also affect the process.
Migration has also become a major election issue in powerful EU countries. In some cases, these domestic political pressures have cast a shadow over other countries’ efforts to become full members of the Schengen area.
