Mitsotakis: Migration issue cannot be solved through unilateral abolition of Schengen
In a message directed towards Berlin where the German government has announced stricter controls at all German land borders, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has reiterated his position that Europe’s answer to the migration problem cannot be the unilateral abolition of the Schengen agreement.
“The answer can be a fair compromise on the guarding of the European borders,” Mitsotakis said in an interview on Talk Radio. “We shouldn’t throw the ball into the court of the countries of first entry.”
His government has “followed a fair and strict policy” in protecting the country’s and the EU’s borders, particularly along the Evros River, he maintained.
“This policy had the effect of reducing the entry of migrants on the border and normalizing the situation on the islands … We sent a message that the traffickers are not in control.”
He added that the Greek Coast Guard has saved thousands of people and it was demeaning to spread “peddle conspiracy theories” against the agency, which was engaged in “active deterrence, not push backs.”
Turning to domestic issues, Mitsotakis said that Attica “is not facing a water shortage problem, but we must take measures.”
“We will proceed with the water transfer project from the artificial lake of Kremasta so that we can be assured that Attica will never face a water shortage problem,” he said.
Regarding the US elections, he said Kamala Harris was the clear winner in Wednesday’s debate between the two presidential candidates.
“We will work with whoever the American people choose,” he added.
