Cyprus is committed to integrating the European age verification mechanism into its national digital wallet by early 2027, Deputy Minister of Research, Innovation and Digital Policy Nikodemos Damianou announced on Tuesday on the sidelines of the final Telecommunications Council under the Cyprus EU Presidency in Luxembourg.

Speaking to reporters ahead of the start of proceedings, Damianou stressed that the protection of minors online has been a top priority for the Cyprus Presidency of the EU Council. "Our Presidency has focused on promoting a coordinated European approach on strengthening the safety online for children, but also achieving an effective age verification mechanism across the Union," he said.

Asked about the European Commission's blueprint for age verification, the Deputy Minister came out in favour of its adoption at national level. "Cyprus is committed to using the blueprint nationally, first of all, and we're hoping to be able to integrate it into our national wallet by the beginning of 2027," he said.

Brushing aside reservations about the effectiveness of the mechanism including on the question of VPNs, Damianou pointed to broad consensus among member states. "We believe, and I think that's a broad consensus among member states, that this is a very solid, very important solution that can be the foundation for what we want to do," he stressed. He acknowledged, however, that no solution could be 100% foolproof.

At the centre of today's Council are three files which, as the Deputy Minister put it, represent "key building blocks of Europe's digital future" within the framework of the One Europe, One Market strategy: a general approach on the European Business Wallet, progress reports on the Digital Networks Act, and the revision of the Cybersecurity Act.

The European Business Wallet was described by the Deputy Minister as "a flagship deliverable of the digital package" and a key enabler of the 28th Regime roadmap, as it will provide businesses with a secure, trusted and harmonised digital identity solution across all member states.

As regards the Digital Networks Act Damianou acknowledged that the most contentious articles, including those on spectrum governance and access regulation, remain open. "There's no way other than pushing forward with hard work," he noted, indicating that the Presidency had followed a two-track approach: article-by-article discussion alongside technical workshops to allow member states to better understand the Commission's proposals. He expressed hope of handing the incoming Irish Presidency "a very solid foundation" to build on.

Asked about the technology sovereignty package recently presented by the European Commission, Damianou described it as a move in the right direction, while reserving any definitive assessment for a later stage. "We need to deep dive into it", he said, since it very early days, since the package was presented by the EU executive.

The Deputy Minister was at pains to clarify that the Cyprus Presidency's motto of "an autonomous union, open to the world" does not stand in contradiction to building Europe's own capabilities. "Being open to the world doesn't mean that we should not keep focusing on building our capabilities. It means that we should still be open in parallel to be able to use the best global technology that is out there," he argued, adding that cloud, data and chips constitute the three key pillars of that capability.

On satellite communications and the contentious question of frequency reservation for EDIS, Damianou declined to pre-empt the discussion. "We're having an informal discussion on that today, so I cannot preempt anything in that respect," he said.

Damianou expressed hope that the digital simplification omnibus could still be completed despite the limited time remaining. "We're still hopeful to be able to complete that package despite the short period of time that is left," he noted.

Today's Council agenda, he said, "reflects the work that we have done during these five months" and speaks to the Presidency's overarching motto of "an autonomous union, open to the world." He wished the incoming Irish Presidency every success in taking the work forward.

Source: CNA(ΚΥΠΕ)