The first phase of the multinational civil-military exercise “Argonaut 2016” took place on Monday at the premises of the old Larnaca airport.

The exercise is divided in three phases and takes place at the territorial, maritime and aerial area of Larnaca District, within the exclusive economic zone of the Republic of Cyprus and Nicosia FIR.

Two national plans of Cyprus, called “Estia” and “Nearchos”, will be tested during the exercise attended by personnel from the National Guard, the Joint Rescue Coordination Center (JRCC), the Civil Defence, the Cyprus Police and other state agencies of Greece, the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Israel, Italy and Hungary.

One of the scenarios during the first part of the exercise involved the landing at Larnaca airport of an aircraft of the Air Force of Hungary, carrying civilians and injured persons from a war zone in Eastern Mediterranean.

They were received at a site recently constructed with European Union funds, near the airport control tower.

Commander Costas Fytiris from the JRCC said that this year the number of participating countries has exceeded previous years and this shows that Cyprus enjoys the trust of European and other countries as regards crisis management in the Middle East.

He said the exercise has made a good impression on foreign observers.

Deputy Director of Larnaca Civil Defense Chrysilios Chrysiliou said that the exercise is attended by 19 countries with 180 foreign observers.

“Today we are simulating the operation of a multinational coordination centre which coordinates the evacuation of civilians from neighboring countries through Cyprus. At the same time we are simulating the operation of foreign embassies in Cyprus and of the country in crisis” he explained.

The final stage will be concluded on Tuesday, at Larnaca port, in the presence of the country`s political and military leadership and foreign diplomats and observers.