Tensions peaked at Greece’s border with the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia over the weekend after the FYROM army started building a border fence to keep out would-be migrants.
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“We cannot accommodate any more refugees in Europe, that’s not possible”, Valls said according to a transcript issued by his office, adding that tighter control of external borders would determine the fate of the European Union.
In a recent interview with Kathimerini and other Greek media, FYROM’s Foreign Minister Nikola Poposki said that the EU’s border monitoring agency Frontex should establish a presence at Greece’s border with FYROM.
Officers released tear gas and stun grenades to push the rioters back, some lobbing back the stones thrown at them.
Hundreds of Moroccans, Algerians and Pakistanis tried to storm the border between Greece and Macedonia on Thursday, tearing down part of the barbed wire fence at the crossing and demanding to be allowed to carry on into northern Europe.
A government spokesman said that the fence should “direct the inflow of people” and the border will remain open.
Macedonia, along with other Balkan countries on the migrant route, began turning away “economic migrants” almost two weeks ago.
Syrians, Afghans and Iraqis are flowing largely unimpeded across the Balkans having landed by boat and dinghy in Greece from Turkey.
Clashes erupted after a 32-year-old Moroccan migrant was electrocuted and suffered severe burns when he touched a high-voltage cable on the Greek side of the border.
A senior Macedonian government official, who declined to be named, said the new fence was “just a preventive measure”. The most popular route for migrants sees them move further north towards Germany and Scandinavia.
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“We will allow passage for the people who come from war-affected regions as we have done thus far”, he added.
