[ad_1]
ATHENS, Greece — Greece will step by step lengthen a fence alongside its land border with Turkey and enhance surveillance measures following a rise in unlawful immigration from its jap neighbor, the Greek authorities stated Tuesday.
The choice was taken throughout a gathering, chaired by Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, of prime immigration, safety and navy officers.
A authorities assertion stated the assembly mentioned “the issue of elevated strain for unlawful entry, each alongside the land border and alongside the ocean border” within the jap Aegean Sea.
Greece has already constructed a 40-kilometer (25-mile) fence within the space of the Evros River, alongside the northeastern land border. Athens has repeatedly accused Ankara of intentionally sending hundreds of migrants who stay in Turkey into Greece to destabilize its neighbor. Relations between the 2 regional rivals are tense over immigration and undersea vitality exploration rights.
In 2020, Turkey stated it was throwing open its western borders to migrants who wished to journey on to Europe. Greece stepped up frontier safety to stop hundreds of individuals from breaking by means of within the Evros area, and subsequently expanded the prevailing fence.
“It was determined to step by step develop the fence alongside the entire size of the Evros,” with an preliminary give attention to potential hassle spots, Tuesday’s assertion stated. “It was additionally determined to improve and strengthen surveillance techniques.”
Greece has additionally accused Turkey of encouraging or facilitating unlawful immigration by sea of hundreds of individuals from the Center East, Asia and Africa who attempt to attain the close by Greek islands in unseaworthy boats. Turkish authorities, and human rights teams, have in flip accused Greece of illegally returning asylum-seekers who make it onto Greek territory with out permitting them to make their asylum bids.
Greek authorities had been criticized this month over a bunch of primarily Syrians reported trapped for days on an islet within the Evros River. Greek officers stated the islet was on the Turkish facet of the border. They had been ultimately situated at a unique location on the Greek facet, after being allegedly pushed backwards and forwards for days by each side.
After almost one million individuals entered Europe throughout the Greek-Turkish border in 2015, an settlement between the European Union and Ankara sought to restrict the flows. But it surely hasn’t been absolutely applied.
Turkey hosts massive migrant populations. Greece argues that its neighbor is a secure vacation spot for asylum-seekers who ought to subsequently not search to journey on westwards.
———
Comply with AP’s protection of migration points at https://apnews.com/hub/migration
[ad_2]
