After earlier accepting 1 million migrants, Greece closes borders, sea

Robert Besser
28 May 2022, 04:40 GMT+10

After a sharp increase in attempted entries by migrants, the government of Greece warned that it would no longer allow the illegal entry of migrants by land or sea
In 2015 and 2016, when one million refugees fleeing war and poverty from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan arrived, mainly via Turkey, Greece became the frontline of Europe's migration crisis
While the number of arrivals has sharply dropped, in recent weeks Greek authorities said they had stopped a significant number of migrants from entering the country

ATHENS, Greece: After a sharp increase in attempted entries by migrants through its Aegean islands and land border with Turkey over the past few days, the government of Greece warned that it would no longer allow the illegal entry of migrants by land or sea.

In 2015 and 2016, when one million refugees fleeing war and poverty from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan arrived, mainly via Turkey, Greece became the frontline of Europe's migration crisis.

While the number of arrivals has sharply dropped, in recent weeks Greek authorities said they had stopped a significant number of migrants from entering the country.

According to police data, about a dozen vessels with hundreds of migrants on board unsuccessfully attempted to cross from Turkey to the Greek islands in recent days.

"We will not allow anyone to enter Greece illegally, either from Evros or through the islands. Let everyone realize this," said Civil Protection Minister Takis Theodorikakos on TV channel ANT1.

Meanwhile, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan has accused the Greek prime minister of blocking sales of F-16 fighter jets to Turkey, during a visit to the U.S.

Greece and Turkey are historic rivals and have competing territorial claims in the eastern Mediterranean, while also conflicting on migrant issues.

According to Greek government data, some 11,000 migrants entered Greece through the Greek-Turkish land border in the region of Evros or through the Aegean islands in the first four months of 2022, which was 25 percent higher than in 2021.

Watch latest videos

News RELEASES

Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to Philippine Times.

More Information

26 ℃

Mostly Cloudy in Manila/Aquino

International

Section

UK's Telegraph news block in Russia due to war coverage

MOSCOW, Russia: The UK newspaper, the Telegraph, has been blocked in Russia, following a request from the Russian prosecutor-general.The TASS ...

Airbus captain tries to land at Lahore runway closed two years ago

LAHORE, Pakistan - An Airbus 320 carrying 171 passengers narrowly avoided an accident at Allama Iqbal International Airport, Pakistan's second-largest ...

Biden vows to combat effects of Supreme Court decision on Roe v. Wade

WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. President Joe Biden on Friday vowed to "do all in my power" to protect a woman's ...

Myanmar junta minister discusses nuclear cooperation with Russia

YANGON, Myanmar - According to military-run media, a junta delegation discussed nuclear technology collaboration with a Russian state-owned atomic energy ...

U.S. to provide Tk2.3 crore as emergency funding for northern Bangladesh

DHAKA, Bangladesh - The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is providing more than Tk2.3 crore in emergency funding ...

661 pound freshwater fish caught in Cambodia river

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia: Cambodian villagers on the Mekong River have caught a stingray fish weighing 661 pounds, which is the ...

Business

Section