Greece’s Minister of Migration and Asylum, Thanos Plevris, referred to the challenges Europe was facing regarding the migration crisis during an informal meeting of the European Union’s Migration and Interior Ministers in Copenhagen.
Speaking to reporters, Plevris said the return of “illegal migrants should be Europe’s top priority,” stressing that the message to migrants must be clear.
“If you enter Europe illegally or if your asylum application is rejected, you have no right to stay in Europe, and you must return to your country,” Plevris told reporters in the Danish capital.
Asked about the ongoing debate on so-called “return hubs,” Plevris said such facilities should be established outside Europe. “Not just outside the European Union, but outside Europe altogether. We must also strengthen the third countries where these centers will be set up,” he added.
The Greek Minister said there was much work to be done, adding that the migrant numbers were large. “I cannot say we [Greece] can manage them. We have over 1,000 migrants in Crete every day who want to reach mainland Greece, and there are 3 million in Libya. This means we have to find solutions within a European framework and our societies.”
Commenting on the new migration law under consultation in Greece, Plevris clarified that it stipulates that if an asylum seeker’s application is rejected and they do not return to their country of origin, it is a violation of the country’s penal code, resulting in a two-to-five-year prison sentence. “The message is: If you are illegally in our country, there are two options. Prison or return,” Plevris stated.
