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EU slams Greece over failure to control external borders

The Slovenian plan essentially envisages that most of the migrants who are now entering Greece would stay there.

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At the summit in Amsterdam, Theresa May, Britain’s Home Secretary, accused her counterparts of doing nothing to stem the crisis that now threatens to tear the European Union apart.

In a letter to Merkel approved Tuesday by Bavaria’s Cabinet, Seehofer set out demands including “effective” border controls. A draft text – outlining the deal the EU is prepared to offer Britain to remain in the EU – is now due to be published by Donald Tusk, the European Council president, early next week.

The Prime Minister of Kosovo is expected in Brussels tomorrow to discuss an association agreement with the EU.

Currently, the migrant crisis is the issue which could prompt voters to decide whether Britain has a future in Europe.

But Yiannis Mouzalas, the Greek Migration Minister, condemned the proposals, warning they would only “worsen the trauma”.

Nikos Toskas, Athens’ public order minister, said criticisms of Greece were unfair.

If a large majority of the EU’s 28 nations support it, border controls could be introduced for all people entering the rest of the Schengen zone from Greece, including Greek citizens.

Last year, more than 500,000 refugees arrived in Greece on flimsy rubber boats, and migration experts expect those numbers, along with the death toll, to rise. “Your good suggestion coincides with the visit of a joint Commission-Frontex team to the country on 20-22 January to assess the country’s needs in terms of border management, including border surveillance”, says Juncker.

Greek authorities also underlined the difficulties they are encountering with the refugee relocation program and the return of migrants to Turkey. The EU hopes to reach agreement by June 30 on setting up a new pan-European border and coastguard force, which could intervene in member states without the host country’s consent.

The EU leaders are also calling on Greece to erect camps for 300,000 refugees in an attempt to prevent them from moving north into Europe. “We need a solution within weeks … if not, we can expect conflicts between countries”, he said.

“So member states invited the [European] Commission to prepare the legal and practical basis for the continuance of temporary border measures through Article 26 of the Schengen border code”, he said of the an article that allows to have controls at internal borders in place for up to two years.

The verdict of “serious deficiencies” in Greece’s external border opens the door to activating Article 26, an emergency clause that allows border controls to be imposed for two years.

Dombrovskis said the Commission was intent on preserving Schengen, one of the EU’s key achievements, and said Greece had improved its border controls since November – but not enough.

At a joint Downing Street press conference with Enda Kenny, the Irish Taoiseach, Cameron said he is still pressing for negotiations to conclude in February and said that “if there’s a good deal on the table I’ll take it”.

“The Commission is now examining possible incentives – positive and negative – so that this accord is applied properly”, Bertaud said.

The Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary and Poland have together taken a tough stance on migration and been at odds with western European Union neighbours in dealing with an influx of migrants that topped 1 million a year ago.

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The refugees make the unsafe journey across the Aegean, Simon said, because “they think it’s better than being on land, and that says everything to you [about] their situation, to try to get to freedom, because it’s a better option than anywhere else”.

The Latest: Bavaria demands that Germany control its borders