Afghanistan – What Mitsotakis will say to Erdogan about refugees

The telephone communication between the Prime Minister and the Turkish President at 7.30 pm tonight is made on a Greek initiative as the Prime Minister wants to make it clear that Athens would not like to see a crowd of refugees at the Evros fence and incited mass movements on its land and sea borders, and on the other hand that the mass flows of refugees are not in the interest of either country.

Mitsotakis to Erdogan: We are in the same boat

“Athens believes that contact with Turkey is necessary, as the wider region and especially the two countries may be affected by new refugee flows that will arise from the developments in Afghanistan and, therefore, are facing the same problem,” say government officials. who avoid saying more.

It is no coincidence, after all, that the phone call is made while Mr. Panagiotopoulos and Mr. Chrysochoidis are inspecting the fence in Evros, and after the meeting of the Government Conference for National Defense (KYSEA) for which there was no information or announcements regarding the discussions, concerns, decisions, and actions.

Guarding the border

As officials who know the thoughts of the Prime Minister emphasize, it is certain that Mr. Mitsotakis will make it clear to the Turkish President that if there is no cooperation in this field then “in any case, Greece will continue to show the same efficiency in guarding both land as well as the maritime borders, as it does to this day “.

In essence, Athens wants to explore the ground for creating an ad-hoc co-operation on refugees, if possible, so that Turkey and Greece are not left alone in the face of the apathy and sluggishness of Europeans and the US, “who want to keep the hot potato away and get the two countries to bear the brunt on their own. ”

EU and US to assume their responsibilities

It is no coincidence that Nikos Dendias raised the issue of refugees in the Extraordinary Council of Foreign Ministers for Afghanistan of the EU, where he met, asking for decisions with the participation of the USA.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs gave special weight to the risk of increasing migration flows. He stressed the need to protect the EU ‘s external borders and to avoid a new humanitarian crisis. He emphasized the need to maintain a unified and coordinated approach to the issue of migration and said that it should be made clear to third countries, such as Turkey, that instrumentalization of this issue should not be allowed, noting that there should be close coordination with other countries involved. , starting in the United States.

However, the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a letter has described Turkey as a safe country for Afghan refugees and therefore as the first host country should keep them there and not pressure them or allow them to move. According to the Ministry of Immigration and Asylum, those coming from Afghanistan are not at risk in the neighboring country due to their race, religion, citizenship, political beliefs or participation in a particular social group and can apply for asylum in Turkey.