Greece plans new island camps as migration numbers hit unexpected levels
Greek authorities prepare for increased migration flows with plans for new facilities on popular tourist islands. Current camps reach capacity while officials push for stronger EU-wide measures
Greek officials face a tough-to-handle situation as migrant arrivals double since last autumn. Nikos Panagiotopoulos‚ the Migration Minister points out that island facilities cant handle more people; while mainland spots are running at 60% of their limit
The government has a clear-cut plan: build new holding-centers on Rhodes and Crete (two of the countrys most-visited islands). The numbers tell the story — about 50‚000 new-comers expected to arrive by December 2024
Most people come from the Turkish shore and North-African routes. “We see some movement from Lebanon but its not as big as we might think considering the Middle-East situation‚“ Panagiotopoulos said on Action 24 TV; the flow could change based on regional events
The Greek stance on EU rules is straight-forward: they want them tougher but dont plan to break away from current talks. The new EU migration deal — which took almost a decade to negotiate — will kick-in around mid-2026. Greek leaders push for two main things:
- stronger rules for sending people back
- better control of outer EU borders
Panagiotopoulos‚ who used to run defense matters says: “We need European answers that fit into the Migration and Asylum Pact framework — the EU spent 8 years working on it and now we must start using it“
