Greek PM briefs key European leaders on push at border
Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Friday briefed key European leaders about the steps Greece has taken to guard its borders more effectively as hundreds of refugees and migrants were trying to make the crossing from Turkey into the European Union.
Mitsotakis first spoke on the telephone with German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Friday afternoon and then held discussions with European Council President Charles Michel and French President Emmanuel Macron. Later on Friday, he spoke with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and the prime minister of Bulgaria, which has also stepped up measures on its borders, Boyko Borisov.
The content of his conversations has not been made public.
The move came after a Turkish government official on Thursday said that Turkey would no longer prevent asylum seeks from trying to reach Europe, prompting a push toward Greece.
The decision to open the country’s southwestern border came after a security meeting chaired by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara late on Thursday following the death of the 33 soldiers in the Syrian city of Idlib in an air strike by Russian-backed Syrian forces.
