European Union chair: Greece improving border control, cooperation

Macedonia is only allowing people from countries facing war – namely Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq – to cross from Greece, leaving hundreds of others from countries such as Iran, Pakistan, Bangladesh and north African nations stranded at the border.

A group of about 400 people, mainly from Pakistan and Bangladesh, attempted Wednesday to cross through a creek at a point without the fence, and were repelled by Macedonian authorities. “The situation is chaotic and it seems that there is no way out of it. On the other hand, there is constant transportation of refugees and there is no selection and control yet from the Greek islands”.

But Greece’s neighbors could reintroduce border controls for Greek people if the country were deemed to be “seriously neglecting its obligations”.

A stranded migrant, waits for her husband after being separated to enter into Macedonia from Greek side of the border, near the southern Macedonian town of Gevgelija, Friday, Dec. 4, 2015.

Frustration has risen in recent weeks in the European Commission, the EU executive charged with ramping up controls on the external borders, and among EU governments that Greece is failing to make use of available EU funds and personnel to ensure people arriving in the Schengen area are documented.

Greece recently turned down a deployment of Frontex officers to its border with Macedonia, saying their mandate was too broad.

“We don’t even think that Greece could ever be out of Schengen”.

Some 700,000 migrants have entered the European Union through Greece this year alone.

Calling for the reinforcement of the EU’s Frontex border agency, whose help Greece called for on Thursday after coming under intense pressure from other EU states, de Maiziere said he expected an enhanced role for Frontex in proposals the European Commission is due to make on borders on December 15.

Macedonia has stopped allowing migrants to cross the border unless they are from Syria, Iraq or Afghanistan and considered to be refugees.

Viktor Orban said the suit would be filed later Thursday at the European Court of Justice.

Meanwhile Slovakia said Wednesday it had mounted a legal challenge to the EU’s plan to distribute 160,000 asylum-seekers among member states under a quota system.

Mouzalas said he hopes to have cleared up the impasse at the Macedonian border in “four or five days”.

The boat was carrying a total of seven migrants, and the coast guard says three survivors were pulled from the sea after Thursday’s capsizing off the island of Farmakonissi. But he added the European Union has failed to meet a Greek request for additional equipment for fingerprinting migrants.

About the electrocuted asylum seeker, the socialist party PASOK warned the Greek government that “If you do not take action now, unfortunately, the crisis in Idomeni [at the north Greek border] will be transferred to large urban centers very quickly”.

“The door is in Turkey. Therefore if the flows are not controlled in Turkey, from the coast of Turkey, it is impossible to control the flows from Greece or any other European Union member”.