The aim of Thursday’s meeting of senior officials about the ‘Amalthea’ initiative is to see how we can max up our operational capacity, said Foreign Affairs Minister Constantinos Kombos.
Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the meeting, held with 36 countries participating, Kombos said that among those present are also G7, the EU and the UN ‘and what is a very important presence of all major agencies relating or having to do with humanitarian aid, plus NGOs that are actively involved or could be utilised in the near future.’
He added that the aim of the forum today is to see ‘how we can max up our operational capacity, both in terms of departure in terms of means of Transport and also in relation to the reception in distribution methodology.’
The second issue, he added, ‘is the establishment of a fund that will be able to finance the operational activities of the plan.’
Thirdly, he said, it ‘is about integrating all the states and entities that are participating in order to have a synchronized pace f
or our actions.’
Asked if he is envisaging infrastructure work here and how many boats will be leaving per day, the Minister said it is not about infrastructure here, ‘it is about personnel, it is about procedures, it is about database, it’s about very technical issues that are very important at the same time.’ He underlined that it is not about creating new infrastructure here because “we don’t have the time to do that’ and explained that ‘the critical infrastructure is here, and this what we are utilising and leveraging in terms of our geographical position in the area.’
Regarding the number of boats leaving per day, the minister said ‘the answer is, as many as possible, provided that this is what the system, the plan can manage in terms of operational capacity.’
You have to remember, he underlined, ‘that there are limitations in terms of the reception and distribution and the whole point is not just to stockpile aid here and wait for it to go to Gaza.’
‘It is about a quick turnaround so that we are as
efficient as possible,’ he said, integrating ‘all the interested entities and also managing the distribution in a way that maximises the flow of aid that reaches Gaza.’
Asked how much he expects will be pledged at the forum today, Kombos clarified ‘today is not about a pledging conference as such’ and that this was not a donors’ conference.
‘There are countries that came out and announced in a way pledges but it’s all about an ongoing process. We need to establish the fund as well because announcing the pledge and having the mechanism to do something about it is two different things,’ he remarked. ‘So we are asking everyone being involved to participate. This is what the point of today’s meeting is all about,’ the FM added.
At the same time, it is ‘also about pacing our joint initiatives together so that the fund is established, the money can be funneled into a fund and then we can have that operationalising.’
Asked who will administer the fund, the Minister said ‘this is something that we are discussing
right now. It is one issue the ownership and another issue the actual management. We have certain ideas. We have discussed this with a number of states of the core group.’
The main principle is very clear. It’s about transparency and accountability and the efficient use, said Kombos, adding that ‘we are not in any way dogmatic as to how this can be done. It should be done in a way that keeps the international attention on this project so that it is viable not just now where there’s attention but in the longer run.’
The Minister also said the second boat is ready and is waiting at Larnaca Port to leave ether by the end of the week or the beginning of next week. The delay was due to the weather conditions in Gaza, he added.
Source: Cyprus News Agency
