As the 27 EU leaders voiced growing concern at Thursday’s March 19 summit in Brussels over the risk of a new migration crisis linked to the Middle East—one that could hit frontline host countries with particular force—Greek Defense Minister Nikos Dendias delivered a strong message of resolve on border protection from Alexandroupolis.
Speaking at the 4th Eastern Macedonia and Thrace Forum, now in its second day in Alexandroupolis and organized by City Hub Events of the Alter Ego Media Group together with Tsomokos Communications, Dendias said during a discussion yesterday with the US Permanent Representative to NATO, Matthew Whitaker, that Europe can tackle irregular migration in a way that is both humane and effective.
Recalling first the migration crisis Greece faced in 2012–2013, as well as the Evros border crisis in 2020, the minister stressed that smuggling networks—now operating on an industrial scale—must not be allowed to exploit human misery. “We must protect our borders,” Dendias said. “It is our constitutional right, and the government will do so at any cost,” he added.
For his part, US Ambassador to NATO Matthew Whitaker described Greece as a reliable ally, saying he wished there were more allies like it.
Having already completed an official visit to the Greek Foreign Ministry—where he and Foreign Minister George Gerapetritis discussed the broader situation in the Middle East and Euro-Atlantic relations—as well as a tour of the naval base at Souda, Crete, Whitaker is also remaining in Alexandroupolis today to inspect other infrastructure of strategic importance to the Alliance, beyond the port, which he described as crucial both for energy matters and for military mobility.
“Logistics win wars,” Whitaker said, acknowledging that the Alliance moves a large share of its equipment through the port of Alexandroupolis.
