After a relative lull in recent years, migration flows in 2024 have already increased significantly in the first months of the year. The illegal routes are mainly through the Evros border region in Northeast Greece (the Turkish-Greek border along the Maritsa river - note trans.), but also through the Greek islands, as quoted by News.bg.
According to data from the Ministry of Migration and Asylum in the first quarter of 2024, they represent the highest migration flows since 2019, summarizes "Kathimerini".
The flows in particular through the river Evros (river Maritsa) have been increasing in the last period, as shown by the asylum applications submitted in Filakio, with 585 in April. At the same time, migrants are arriving by sea in small boats, and try to reach various parts of the country, such as the coast of Crete, Gavdos, and Laconia.
The mayor of Gavdos, Lilian Afentaki, said that in June, two boats arrived on the island with 19 and 43 people respectively on board. However, she points out that their transfer is organized immediately, within two days at the most, so there is no problem with tourist traffic.
For comparison, in the first quarter of 2019 (January-April) about 11,000 migrants arrived in Greece. In the same period of 2020, however, arrivals decreased, with about 9,000 migrants entered.
After that, arrivals drop dramatically in 2021 and 2022. For example, in 2021, from January to April, just over 2,000 people arrived, and in 2022, around 3,500 souls. And last year, 4,660 migrants entered the country in the first quarter.
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But in 2024, from the beginning of the year to April, the number of arrivals has already reached 11,835 people, which represents an increase of 154% compared to the same period in 2023.
An increase in the number of arrivals was also registered on the islands in the month of May, with 1,592 people arriving in this month in 2023, while in 2024 they were 4,115.
And in June until Tuesday, 1,477 migrants tried to reach Greek shores and were intercepted by the Greek coast guard. In April 2024, those accommodated in facilities both on the islands and in mainland Greece have already almost doubled compared to the same month in 2023.
Regarding cooperation with the competent authorities in Turkey to monitor and control migration flows, sources from the Greek Coast Guard say that consultations and direct communication are still taking place between the relevant officials of the two countries.
Greek shipping minister Christos Stylianidis and his Turkish counterpart agreed at a meeting in Ankara in January to restore the communication channel between the respective coast guards.