A fruitful discussion and exchange of views on EU research and innovation defence and security priorities took place during the visit from the European Defence Agency (EDA) Chief Executive, Mr. Jiří Šedivý, to the KIOS Research and Innovation Center of Excellence at the University Of Cyprus, on the 11th of October 2021.
Mr. Šedivý was accompanied by EDA’s Policy Officer, Mr. Maxime Roclore and EDA’s Head of Media and Communication, Mrs. Elisabeth Schoeffmann; The Cyprus Ministry of Defence also participated in the visit, by the Chief of the National Guard, Lieutenant General, Mr. Dimokritos Zervakis, the CHOD Aide-de-Camp Mr. Vasilis Christoforou, the Diplomatic Advisor to the Ministry, Mr. Andreas Eliades, and the Minister of Defence Point of Contact to the EDA, Mr. Vasilis Hadjimichael. The Rector of the University of Cyprus, Prof. Tasos Christofides, the Acting Director of the KIOS CoE, Prof. Christos Panayiotou, and other KIOS Faculty members and researchers also joined the meeting.
During the visit, participants discussed topics related to protection and security of critical infrastructure systems were discussed. In addition, a discussion took place concerning EDA’s research projects, focus groups, and other initiatives, in which both the University of Cyprus and the KIOS CoE can have an active participation.
Following the discussion, the guests visited the KIOS’ Laboratory, where researchers demonstrated how their research and innovation activities make critical infrastructure systems smarter, more efficient, greener, and more resilient. Demonstrations included the Center’s work in emergency response technologies; power and energy systems; water distribution systems; transportation networks and connected autonomous vehicles; and the development of cyber-security solutions across different application domains.
