A delegation of the Non-Commissioned Officers Association of the Cyprus Army participated at the 125th General Assembly meeting of the European Organisation of Military Associations and Trade Unions (EUROMIL) that was held in Trencín, Slovakia, late April, hosted by member association ZVSR.
EUROMIL President Emmanuel Jacob opened the conference by welcoming members and reiterating the organisation’s mandate to achieve better social rights for all workers, in particular military personnel.
The general assembly meeting approvedthe Italian association, ITAMIL, with observer status at EUROMIL. ITAMIL is an Italian association founded in 2020 with more than 1000 members from the Italian army and ITAMIL representatives are present in almost all Italian army barracks.
The meeting continued with the presentation of the national reports of EUROMIL members, followed by breakout regional meetings in which the members present from the various regions could gather together to discuss shared issues. Notably, participants at the general assembly meeting agreed upon a joint statement in support of the Ukrainian people and against Russian aggression in Ukraine.
The meeting concluded with a presentation and discussion of ‘useful instruments’ available to EUROMIL members that the organisation can utilise to support them in seeking better rights for military personnel in their country. This included the European Social Charter and EUROMIL’s capacity to make complaints on behalf of members to the European Committee of Social Rights, a process that has already been availed of on behalf of Irish and Portuguese members, as well as the Universal Periodic Review and European Social Dialogue.
The Cypriot delegation referred to the continued Turkish occupation of 37% of the island’s territory since 1974. Regarding regional security issues, the Cypriot delegation talked abut the disproportionate flows of irregular migrants which the Republic is facing and the EU’s contribution to tackle the issue.
Members will meet again in Berlin in October 2022 for the 126th General Assembly meeting.
Source: Cyprus News Agency