Some 2,500 children asked for asylum in Greece in 2017

Some 2,500 unaccompanied minors applied for asylum in Greece last year, around 8 percent of the total 31,400 child refugees who sought asylum in European Union countries in 2017.

Italy received a relatively large chunk of applications for asylum – more than 10,000, or 32 percent of the total – followed by Germany, with 9,100 applications (29 percent).

The United Kingdom received 2,200 applications (7 percent), while Austria received 1,400 (4 percent), Sweden 1,300 and the Netherlands 1,200.

The number of child refugees seeking asylum in EU countries in 2017 almost halved compared to the previous year. In 2016 there were 63,200 applications, while there were 95,200 in 2015.

However, the total number of applications in the EU last year was still double the annual average of 12,000 between 2008 and 2013.