'People of Greece Concerned After Turkey's Refugee Move'
Photos: AA
Click to read the article in Turkish
Refugees continue to cross into Greece by sea after Turkey announced on February 28 that it will no longer prevent them from reaching Europe.
While Greece closed the land borders, refugees enter Greece by the Aegean Sea and the Evros River, which forms the border between the two countries.
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We spoke about the developments with Stelyo Berberakis, a journalist from Greece who also worked as the Athens representative of several media outlets in Turkey.
Greece is 'concerned'
Although there is "great concern" in Greece about what would happen in case of a refugee flow to the country, Turkey's claims regarding the number of refugees are not taken seriously, according to Berberakis.
Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu said on Sunday (March 1) that more than 100 thousand refugees have left Turkey so far.
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"Authorities of Greece made official statements, saying that 10 to 13 thousand people have been piled up at border crossings so far, only 98 of them crossed into Greece and detained," he says. "Moreover, attempts to cross the borders are broadcasted live in both Turkey and Greece. If 100 thousand refugees crossed the border, the government would be overthrown.
"The people of Greece are aware that Turkey hosts millions of refugees and took a heavy responsibility. They understand that people came to Turkey because they ran from the war zone and this is a humanitarian aspect.
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"Greece was already one of the countries that pressurized the European Union for addressing more humanely the crossings to Turkey, which is the first border region for the people who ran from the war zone. Greece wanted more assistance to be given to Turkey. But now, Greece wants to protect its borders. Because there is not a war situation, Turkey has a 'safe country' status, Greece does not allow crossings."
All border crossings of Greece are closed
"Maybe refugees don't want to stay in Greece, they want to go to Europe but Greece's border crossings with all of its neighbors are closed.
"After the readmission agreement, North Macedonia, Bulgaria and Albania closed their borders to refugees. Therefore, even if these people come here, they won't be able to cross freely to Europe.
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"Before Turkey and the European Union signed the Readmission Agreement in 2016, refugees who came to Greece through Turkey were allowed to cross to Macedonia from here and to Serbia and Austria from there. From Austria, refugees could go to any country they wanted. But now, they can't. After the agreement, all countries closed their borders. It is impossible for them to proceed."
Refugees on the Evros River.
"Refugees are placed in camps and a process is initiated for them. But this process is progressing so slowly that the refugees' asylum status becomes clear months or even years later. 300 staff examine the applications of 10 thousand people one by one.
"Here, too, there is a distinction between those who came from Syria and from other countries. A Syrian is accepted, but a person from Afghanistan is not. Courts make the final decision in the three-stage process and if political asylum is granted, the person gains the right to go to any country s/he wants with a travel document."
The situation on the islands
"Refugees who cross the border have to be admitted on the islands. Now there is a situation of inflation on the islands. For example, the population of Lesbos is 86 thousand and the number of refugees who come here is 26 thousand. The people of the island have risen up. With the opening of the border crossings and crossings from Turkey being facilitated, the people of the island are more concerned now.
"Moreover, sporadic clashes also occur between fascists and refugee supporters. There is concern that these conflicts will grow further. Most people oppose the people of Lesbos being left alone with so many refugees. They want the government of Greece to take further measures in this regard. They at least want refugees on the islands to be brought to the mainland and their procedures to be continued there.
'Relations will be negatively affected'
"[President] Erdoğan is highly criticized in the Greek media because of his attitude. It was written for days that opening border crossings in this way is to move away from the law of nations. The mildest criticism is that Turkey does not abide by the European Union criteria. It is clear that this situation will severely, negatively affect Turkey-Greece relations. (HA/VK)