CRETE BRACES FOR A MIGRATION CRISIS

ATHENS, NOVEMBER 8 /SRNA/ - Greece is preparing for a migration crisis on Crete after 1,700 people arrived from Libya in the first three days of November, Migration and Asylum Minister Thanos Plevris said.

Plevris said that the Libyan authorities had stopped cooperating, linking the increase in arrivals to a memorandum of understanding between Turkey and Libya.

He added that a reception centre in Atanati is expected to open next week, Kathimerini reported.

The European Commission's second annual report, presented on November 6, states that irregular border crossings into Greece fell by 23 per cent, while asylum applications decreased by 19 per cent between July 2025 and June 2026.

However, arrivals on Crete increased by 105 per cent to around 21,000, while crossings at Greece's land border with Turkey rose by 33 per cent.

Greece accounted for 25 per cent of disembarkations following search and rescue operations across the bloc, compared with 42 per cent for Italy.

An unnamed EU official said that Greece continues to face disproportionate pressure and qualifies for EU assistance in 2027.

The Commission praised Athens for implementing the bloc's new Pact on Migration and Asylum, which has been in force since June, including border procedures, returns and cooperation with member states.

Plevris said that Greece had returned more than 6,000 migrants in the first ten months of 2026, matching the total for the whole of 2025.

Greece, Italy, Spain and Cyprus are among the four countries eligible for support through the EU Solidarity Fund, which can provide for relocations, financial contributions or compensation for responsibilities.