Interview with the main topic migratory granted to the German newspaper Bild o Kyriakos Mitsotakis.

Among other things, the prime minister argued that European immigration policy cannot work without fences and walls on the external borders of the European Union.

“What good are borders if you can’t protect them? In my opinion, the wall is a necessary tool for land borders. And this is an integral part of a comprehensive immigration policy.”

Referring to the incidents that took place on the Greek-Turkish border, in the Evros region, in 2019, the Prime Minister states: “Six months after taking office, we are faced with an organized invasion of thousands of illegal immigrants. to Greece, that is, to European territory. Turkey was the first country to use migration as a weapon for geopolitical purposes. Then came the entire leadership of the EU. on the Greek-Turkish border and applauded us when we defend the border.”

Referring to an earlier comment by Tom Friedman in the New York Times, Kyriakos Mitsotakis stated that “we need a big wall and a big door.” He explained: “The Great Wall is to ensure that we protect our borders, and the Great Door is to be a generous, legal policy to accept refugees or economic migrants into the European family – because we also need human resources to support our economic growth.”

The Greek Prime Minister also raised the issue of “secondary migration flows”, i.e. refugees who pass through Greece or have been granted asylum there, whose final destination is Germany.

“If someone gets asylum in Greece, I want that person to stay in Greece. And if you want to build your life in Greece, we will be happy to welcome you – as we already do. Can we offer the same benefits as Germany? No. We are not as rich as Germany. I cannot give more benefits to refugees in Greece than I give to Greek citizens. I think everyone understands this,” said Mr. Mitsotakis.

At the same time, he demanded that the same asylum rules apply throughout Europe: “At some point, we must have the same asylum rules throughout Europe so that the so-called ‘asylum market’) is perhaps incorrect term, but we all know what I mean – to become less popular.

Regarding complaints about denials, Kyriakos Mitsotakis responded, “We don’t do denials. But we intercept people at sea. I am fully aware of this and fully convinced that this is in accordance with the legal framework of the European Union. At the same time, we rescued thousands of people who were in danger of drowning in the sea. I want to make this clear and explain to your readers: the fewer people in the sea, the less risk of drowning.”

Finally, in response to NGO complaints that the Greek Coast Guard was robbing refugees, the Prime Minister stated that he was aware of these complaints and that there was no evidence of such incidents.

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