LISBON, July 22 (Xinhua) -- The president of the union of Foreign and Border Service inspectors Acacio Pereira said on Wednesday that an illegal immigration route from Africa to the Algarve, in the south of Portugal, has recently been formed.

"The evidence is not denied and there is a reality here: There is a route and we are a destination," he told the Portuguese Lusa News Agency.

Since the beginning of 2020, 69 immigrants illegally landing on the south coast of Portugal have been intercepted, he was quoted as saying.

Pereira stressed that the route is only "as a gateway" from African countries to other parts of Europe, Lusa reported.

According to Lusa, Pereira said immigrants arrive in Portugal and, while waiting for the conclusion of the legal entry process, flee the country.

"Things must be assumed and dealt with properly. This is the only way to resolve them. Spain already has readmission and return agreements with Morocco," the union leader was quoted by Lusa as saying.

He recalled that Portugal is still in negotiations for an agreement on illegal immigration with Morocco. "These are two close countries and these issues should have been resolved a long time ago," he told Lusa. Enditem

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