Emphasis on the need for Turkey to fully implement EU-Turkey agreement

Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias met with European Commissioner for Home Affairs Ylva Johansson on Tuesday. The meeting focused on the new EU Pact on Migration and Asylum and the implementation of the EU-Turkey Statement of 2016.

In the context of the meeting, they examined the international dimension of the migration-refugee issue as well as the EU-Turkey agreement, while a special reference was made to the North African countries, diplomatic sources said.

Referring to the international dimension of the migration-refugee issue, the Greek side emphasised the need for the EU to promote agreements with third countries on readmissions, as well as the importance of inserting special clauses for cooperation in migration into the EU's association agreements with third countries.

In this framework, the Greek side called for a positive approach for countries that collaborate with the EU combined with penalties for those that don't (more for more, less for less). Especially regarding Turkey, they discussed that it is no longer accepting returns of migrants from Greece, as provided under the EU-Turkey Statement of 2016.

Alternate Foreign Minister Miltiadis Varvitsiotis and Migration and Asylum Minister Notis Mitarachi were also present at the meeting.