Greek PM voices disappointment over EU's handling of migrant crisis
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E-mail Xinhua, March 8, 2016
Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras on Monday expressed his disappointment over EU's way in tackling migrant crisis before a European Union (EU) summit with Turkey, complaining that some agreements on migration have not been fully implemented.
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![Syrian refugees block the railway tracks in Eidomeni at Greece-Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) buffer zone to protest against erratic opening of the border crossing on March 3, 2016. [Photo/Xinhua]](http://images.china.cn/attachement/jpg/site1007/20160308/b8aeed990a5818487dff12.jpg "Syrian refugees block the railway tracks in Eidomeni at Greece-Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) buffer zone to protest against erratic opening of the border crossing on March 3, 2016. [Photo/Xinhua]") |
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Syrian refugees block the railway tracks in Eidomeni at Greece-Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) buffer zone to protest against erratic opening of the border crossing on March 3, 2016. [Photo/Xinhua] |
Tsipras told reporters upon his arrival in Brussels that unfortunately between the two summits, there were agreements that have not been implemented by everybody.
"This is a problem for our common home for Europe, either there were agreements not implemented or there were no agreements at all," the prime minister said.
Tsipras said the current situation was "difficult" and he hoped the summit with Turkey could generate some credible outcome in order to implement the EU-Turkey action plan, decrease the massive migrant flows and crack down on the smuggler network.
Europe had some fundamental values and principles, he said. "Rules are for all. Everybody has to implement our common decisions."
Tsipras, although he did not elaborate on the particular not-implemented agreements, could have referred to a relocation deal struck by European leaders last years, which demands member states to relocate 160,000 asylum seekers but so far only got several hundred refugees settled down.
"It is necessary to accelerate the relocation process," Tsipras told reporters.
Greece has been the EU's front line country in the migrant crisis as millions of refugees, mainly from war-torn Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan, flooded in and tried to cross its border to go to western Europe.
Brussels on Monday was holding a summit with Turkey, trying to find a way to stem the massive migrant flows and safeguard its Schengen policy.
The leaders were also set to discuss the issue of providing humanitarian assistance to refugees, particularly in Greece.
According to the International Rescue Committee, currently some 2,000 refugees were arriving on Greece's shores each day.
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