One in five foreign residents in Cyprus is Russian, with over 40,000 permanent residents, the deputy migration ministry reported on Wednesday.

Of the 200,000 foreign nationals who permanently and legally reside in Cyprus, around 40,000 are of Russian origin.

“These are people who work locally in companies with foreign interests, as well as students with Cypriot or European families and friends,” said Deputy Migration Minister Nicholas Ioannides.

The United Kingdom ranks second with over 16,000 residents, followed by Nepal with more than 15,000, Ioannides added.

The ministry also noted that there are currently more than 16,000 pending asylum applications, along with an equal number of applications from individuals who already hold international protection status.