The government of Cyprus has approved a plan to buy new defence equipment. It will use a special European Union programme for this. The programme is called the Security Action for Europe (SAFE).
Cyprus can get up to €1.2 billion in loans from the EU. The loans have a low cost and a long time to pay them back. The Defence Minister, Vasilis Palmas, said the new equipment is only for defence. It is not for attack. He said this because Cyprus has been a partly occupied country for 51 years. He believes the country needs to be safe.
The Minister did not say exactly what equipment they will buy. This is for security reasons. He said Cyprus will work with different countries to make the equipment, not only big ones like France and Germany.
The government will send its plan to the EU on November 30th. The EU will then check the plan. The first money from the loans will arrive in 2026. The Cypriot parliament must also approve the final plan.