Greek PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis urged the EU to speed up the return of illegal migrants denied asylum during a Brussels summit on March 20, 2025. Highlighting the need for a new “safe countries” list, he aims to bolster Greece’s deportation efforts, a topic echoing the 2015-2016 crisis when over a million crossed its borders.
Tag: Asylum Policy
In a recent interview, Migration Minister Nikos Panagiotopoulos stated that Greece will not accept mass returns of migrants from Western European countries. He emphasized the need for stricter asylum regulations and increased border security, while also addressing concerns over new migration routes from North Africa to Crete.
Amid fears of a refugee surge from Lebanon, Cyprus has declared its migration route closed, citing measures to curb asylum seeker inflows. This move has sparked tension with humanitarian groups and led to increased scrutiny over Cyprus’s handling of migration, including accusations of illegal pushbacks and rising racially motivated violence.
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis cautioned against outsourcing EU asylum policy to non-member countries as migration tops the agenda at a leaders’ summit. He highlighted the need for legal migration alongside efforts to curb irregular entries, emphasizing Greece’s labor shortages while addressing criticisms over treatment of asylum seekers.