President of the Republic Nikos Christodoulides expressed his satisfaction with the support his request to start the discussion on the re-designation of areas in Syria as safe has received by EU member states in the latest European Council. President Christodoulides was replying to journalists' questions on the sidelines of an event organised by the Cyprus Youth Organisation on Monday in Nicosia. Asked when he will proceed with the appointment of a Deputy Minister of Migration, he said "immediately". Replying to a question about the next steps in the migration issue regarding Syria, the President said that he officially requested during the recent European Council for a discussion to begin "so that some areas of Syria are designated as safe areas, on the basis that they are safe areas and we know that certain areas are (safe)." He also expressed his satisfaction for the fact that "a certain number of member states supported our position," noting also that there was no reaction or negative position express ed about his request. President Christodoulides also recalled that on 2 May he will travel with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to Lebanon, which "was an initiative of the Republic of Cyprus". This, he said, is another development in the context of the holistic approach "to address this issue, and it is something that is of great concern to us." Source: Cyprus News Agency