The Minister of Migration and Asylum Thanos Plevris referred to the latest data on migration flows to Greece in the context of the briefing of the relevant parliamentary committees on the New Migration Pact and the Return Regulation.
As of 20 April, Plevris said, maritime flows in 2025 were 9,313 and in 2026 4,979. “There is a very big decrease, almost 50%, which in total is around 35%, if we include land flows,” Plevris said and continued: On our maritime border with Turkey, the flows in 2025 were 6,722 and in 2026 they are 2,595. We are talking about a very large reduction. In Crete, we have stabilization as the flows in 2025 were 2,595 and in 2026 2,539.”
Referring to the war aspect, he said that so far there has not been any worrying mobility in the sense that Turkey’s borders have not been under any pressure in terms of migratory flows and any movements have been to populations within their own countries. He noted, however, that “what we are not seeing now is very likely, if a situation of geopolitical uncertainty continues, that we will see down the road.”
We are prepared for a surge in flows – If necessary there will be an escalation of measures
As for the Libyan part, he said there are around 3 million displaced Sudanese: 1.5 million in Egypt, 1 million in Chad and 500,000 in Libya, where young men from families living either in Chad or Egypt are going, and “this is a worrying reservoir to Europe.” He also pointed out that in the first quarter there were increased flows through Libya from Bangladesh from where they were travelling very easily, as tourists, either to Egypt or directly to Libya and, the circuits had adapted to such a context. As he noted, with actions taken by the Italian side and by the Greek side and by the European Commission, this travel regime is now being interrupted or restricted in order to limit such a flow. But the main flow that seems to be possible from Libya has to do with the war and the civil strife that is going on in Sudan.
Pleyris also said that, what we seem to be concerned about is the Libyan front and we have prepared ourselves there: “I make it clear from now on that we are not going to allow what happened in the country in 2015 [. . . .] We have made a decision that in the event that there are unaccountable migratory flows, there will be an escalation of measures.” I have to tell you in simple terms that, “the asylum suspension will be the mildest of all the measures we have planned, should there be an outbreak.”
