The close cooperation that the United States and Cyprus have developed for the past two years become a reality with the operation of the Cyprus Center for Land, Open-seas, and Port Security (CYCLOPS).
The groundbreaking ceremony of CYCLOPS took place on January 4th, 2021 and official construction is expected to begin February 2021. According to information from the US Embassy, CYCLOPS will be ready to receive trainers and trainees in early 2022. The construction and ongoing support for CYCLOPS is a true partnership. The United States will construct the facility and provide equipment, trainers, and other capacity-building support, while the Republic of Cyprus will contribute land, facilitate travel, and provide trainers. The whole project will cost $ 5 million, donated by the US Government.
CYCLOPS will allow the United States and their partners to provide enhanced technical assistance related to safety and security, including border security, customs and export controls, port and maritime security, and cybersecurity.
The five million dollar training facility will include a number of different hands-on training platforms, including a mock land border crossing, passenger screening area, and a mobile cyber security training laboratory, which will enable regional partners to learn best practices for securing critical infrastructure and to engage in cross border, counterproliferation cyber investigations.
CYCLOPS will support also as it mention the efforts to curb the proliferation risks posed by malign regional actors and violent extremist organizations.
Also as Acting Secretary of Homeland Security Chad F. Wolf statement while he visit Cyprus last January during the groundbreaking ceremony a mobile cyber security training laboratory will allow regional partners to learn best practices to secure their critical infrastructure and engage in cross-border cyber investigations. These training platforms will serve as a hub that works in close association with partner countries in the Mediterranean, the Middle East, and elsewhere. «The CYCLOPS center is just one important result of continuing American engagement in the Eastern Mediterranean region and of the strong relationship between the United States and the Republic of Cyprus», added Mr. Wolf
Eleni Nikolaou Constantinou
Voice of the island-2021
