The Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis participated in the afternoon in the discussion organized by the Africa-Europe Foundation on immigration and mobility, in view of the 6th European Union-Africa Summit on 17 and 18 February.
During his speech, the Prime Minister presented the triptych of the Greek proposal for the effective management of uncontrolled migration that endangers human lives: guarding the borders and combating trafficking, only legal and organized migration routes and actions. of the deeper causes behind the movements from Africa to Europe.
“I believe that if we act on the three fronts I have pointed out, in providing the EU with opportunities for legal migration, in effectively guarding the borders to fight, in eliminating trafficking networks, in order to dismantle the model by which they make money and in actions to to deal with the underlying causes that make people feel that they should leave their homeland, this would be a reasonable and balanced approach to address this challenge, “said Kyriakos Mitsotakis.
In this context, Kyriakos Mitsotakis also pointed out that closer cooperation is needed between African countries and Europe for the return of migrants who do not meet the conditions to receive asylum.
Referring to the experiences of Greece, the Prime Minister noted that in addition to immigration, Greece has been confronted with the “unacceptable practice” of instrumentalizing desperate people to serve geopolitical purposes to the detriment of itself and the European Union.
“We must be clear, both European and African countries: we must condemn on the strictest terms any attempt to use migrants for geopolitical purposes,” said Kyriakos Mitsotakis, adding that the Greek Coast Guard has “saved thousands of lives at sea.” without discounts on respect for human rights.
In his speech, the Prime Minister focused on Greece’s historical ties with Africa, emphasizing that “Greece’s commitment to Africa is stronger than ever” and addresses a wide range of issues of common interest, such as tackling the effects of the climate crisis, demographic challenges and security. He also pointed out the solidarity that Greece has shown to African countries during the pandemic, as it has provided 5 million doses of vaccines either through the Covax mechanism or bilaterally.
“Greece is a neighbor of Africa. It is connected to it – despite being separated from it – through our common sea, the Mediterranean. “It is not possible to be absent from this discussion”, said Kyriakos Mitsotakis.
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