Greece, Turkey close to migration deal

Greece and Turkey are reportedly on the brink of an agreement that will institutionalize a solution to the migration problem, which is an open wound for both countries.

Kathimerini understands that the ongoing discussions have a December 7 deadline, when the Summit Council between the two countries will take place in Thessaloniki, in the presence of Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

The aim is to have a joint communique at the end of the council, a “memorandum of understanding,” as it will be called.

Under discussion is the permanent establishment of a Greek officer of the Hellenic Coast Guard in Izmir and a corresponding Turkish Coast Guard officer in Mytilene on Lesvos for better understanding between the two sides in the “common goal,” which is the control of migrant flows, from both sides.

Greek Migration Minister Dimitris Kairidis is already in direct communication with Turkish Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya, informing him of the number of boats that attempt the crossing each day, as Athens has a clear picture of how many vessels leave the Turkish shore every 12 hours. It is evident that all parties want to have an operationally comprehensive view of migration movements, and that the coast guard should be the appropriate vehicle for achieving this goal rather than ministers. This will be made possible by the officers’ presence at their respective centers. Likewise, direct communication between the two nations’ police corps will be maintained regarding migrant flows across the border at the Evros River, whose water levels have been very low lately.

Also under discussion is the activation of an old request by Ankara for easier travel by Turks to seven islands in the eastern Aegean: Rhodes, Lesvos, Samos, Chios, Kos, Kos, Leros and Kastellorizo. Turkish citizens will be able to travel to these islands and a visa will be issued in Greek territory which will be – and this is the difference compared to the past – a valid for 12 months. This project is called “visa facilitation” and has been discussed at length by Kairidis with EU Commissioner Ylva Johansson, with the islands serving as a model for further facilitation of Turkish citizens’ travel to the rest of Europe. Yerlikaya will travel to Brussels where he will have a one-to-one meeting with Johansson on November 23.

The memorandum will include a commitment by the two countries to avoid inflammatory statements, which, as history has shown, could undermine the considerable effort that has been made in recent times.