A planned meeting of European Union ministers for European affairs in Cyprus has been postponed following a drone strike on a British air base overnight.
The informal meeting of the EU’s General Affairs Council, which was scheduled to take place Monday and Tuesday under Cyprus’ EU Council presidency, was called off after a drone targeted the United Kingdom’s RAF Akrotiri base.
“We had one isolated incident in which the British base in Akrotiri, Cyprus, became the target of an unmanned aerial vehicle,” a spokesperson for the Cypriot presidency said.
“In light of the unexpected developments, which unfortunately affected today’s flights to Cyprus, the Cypriot presidency has decided to postpone the informal meeting of the General Affairs Council,” the spokesperson added.
Authorities said the exact origin of the drone is still under investigation.
“The precise origin of the unmanned aerial vehicle is currently being clarified. However, it has been confirmed that the Republic of Cyprus itself was not the target of the attack,” the spokesperson stated.
Cyprus, an EU member state, hosts two UK air bases that are considered British sovereign territory. The island currently holds the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union.
The incident comes amid heightened tensions in the broader Middle East region, raising further security concerns across Europe.
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