"Greece does not participate in so called push-backs", says Minister

Greece's Migration and Asylum Minister Notis Mitarachi reiterated that "Greece does not participate in so called push-backs."

His post on twitter was made following the announcement by the European Union’s border agency, Frontex, that it is conducting an investigation into media reports of alleged illegal pushbacks of migrants and refugees in the Aegean.

"We protect our borders in line with international law. And we continue to rescue hundreds of migrants every month from the waters of the Mediterranean," he added.

It is noted that no documents or other materials have been found to substantiate any accusations of violations of the law or the Frontex Code of Conduct by deployed officers.

“I informed EU Commissioner Ylva Johansson that we are looking into the accusations levelled by several news organizations related to our activities at Greece’s external borders. We aim to uphold the highest border guarding standards in all of our operations and do not tolerate any violations of the fundamental rights in any of our activities,” Frontex Executive Director Fabrice Leggeri said.