NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) — Cyprus sought to strengthen its ties with India Thursday, signing agreements aimed to tighten navy cooperation, broaden using photo voltaic vitality expertise and stem unlawful migration.

Cypriot Foreign Minister Ioannis Kasoulides mentioned after a gathering with India’s visiting international minister, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, that an preliminary settlement would act as a springboard for talks on methods to strengthen cooperation on navy and protection issues.

Another settlement entails Cyprus becoming a member of the International Solar Alliance, a corporation made up of 90 international locations that goals to develop and ease entry to photo voltaic vitality expertise as a part of the worldwide transition to renewable vitality sources.

“I welcome very much the signing of the Framework Agreement on International Solar Alliance by Cyprus, and I believe that our cooperation in the field of renewable energy will gain as a result,” mentioned Jaishankar.

The two ministers additionally signed an settlement initiating formal discussions on facilitating the swift repatriation of Indians who’ve had their asylum purposes rejected and permitting enterprise professionals and lecturers to extra simply journey and work in each international locations.

Cyprus’ Interior Ministry mentioned in a press release {that a} formal settlement is anticipated to be signed in February subsequent yr.

Applications for asylum within the Mediterranean island nation rose to 18,345 between January and October of this yr. Interior Minister Nicos Nouris mentioned earlier this month that the variety of folks with pending asylum claims and people who have already been granted a extra restricted safety standing is the same as greater than 6% of Cyprus’ inhabitants.

According to Cyprus Asylum Service figures, Indians made up 7% of all new asylum candidates final yr and 16% in 2020.