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Παρασκευή, 18 Οκτωβρίου 2019 18:18

Mitsotakis from EU Summit: US withdrawal from Syria a mistake; major focus on dealing with migration/refugee crisis

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, speaking to reporters immediately after attending his first EU Summit, referred to a unanimous condemnation by European leaders of Turkey’s invasion of northern Syria.

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, speaking to reporters immediately after attending his first EU Summit, referred to a unanimous condemnation by European leaders of Turkey’s invasion of northern Syria.

Moreover, in response to press questions, he called Washington’s decision to evacuate positions in northern Syria as “mistaken”, saying this is demonstrated by who benefits from such a move.

At the same time, he said the American presence in the eastern Mediterranean as well as the Greece-US strategic relations remain solid.

Asked about the again acute problem of illegal migration, Mitsotakis said the Greek side insisted on European leaders adopting final conclusions that include the reference that the Union must support Greece in managing the migration/refugee flows arriving on a handful of Greek isles from the opposite Turkish coast.

“We reacted with a plan for the migration crisis, and this plan is proceeding towards decongesting the islands (evacuating groups of migrants/refugees) … There is no Greece that expected us to solve a problem, which surpasses Greece, in just three months.” At the same time he said the country must have a humanitarian outlook on the issue but at the same time guard the borders more effectively.