Greece is in talks with Germany to create migrant return centres in African countries, according to Immigration and Asylum Minister Thanos Plevris.
Speaking to public broadcaster ERT, Plevris confirmed that discussions are taking place with safe African states that would accept migrants who cannot be returned to their homelands.
He stressed that the initiative is being advanced by individual EU member states rather than the European Union as a whole, and argued that hosting such centres outside Europe would serve as a deterrent to irregular migration.
Plevris also highlighted a significant reduction in migrant arrivals to Greece in recent months. He reported that numbers had dropped by “45 to 50 percent” between August and mid-November compared with the same period in 2024.
Greece registered around 23,000 arrivals last year, he said, compared with roughly 12,000 this year. After a spike in July, arrivals are currently “18 percent lower than last year.”
The Minister attributed the decline in crossings partly to strengthened cooperation with Turkey, which he said has reduced movements by “more than 50 percent,” while diplomatic engagement in Libya has also contributed to the overall downward trend.
Source: Ekathimerini
