Decongestion of islands can't be implemented a la carte, Alt FM Varvitsiotis says

In order to proceed with the decongestion and the better control of the borders, he explained, Greece must speed up the migrants return procedure, either to Turkey or to their country of origin.

The operation of closed hosting facilities, namely the operation of close pre-departure centres, is the only way for that to be achieved.

The government's plan for migration has a specific structure, he said and explained: "Βetter protection of the borders, better control on the islands, operation of pre-departure centres for fast returns to Turkey or to their countries and of course allocation of the refugees that are entitled to asylum and hosting in Greece. This plan can't be implemented a la carte," he said.

Varvitsiotis noted that after the recent change in legislation, the government is handling the issue in a different way. "We have already seen incidents that prove that the coast guard is not simply an observer but has taken action to intercept the flows, a trafficker pursuit has started and islands' decongestion procedure has been launched", he concluded.