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Brussels reminds Austria of “EU rules on Migration”, warns of “humanitarian crisis” in Greece

The European Union must stay united in its response to the migration crisis, top officials said in a joint statement of Tuesday afternoon, most likely in response to Austria’s unilateral move to attempt to close the Balkan Route.y, expressing worry that a “humanitarian crisis” could be in the making.

“We are concerned about the developments along the Balkan route and the humanitarian crisis that might unfold in certain countries, especially in Greece,” EU Migration Commissioner Dimitris Avramopoulos and Dutch Migration Minister Klaas Dijkhoff, whose country holds the EU‘s rotating presidency, say in a statement.

“We call on all countries and actors along the route to prepare the necessary contingency planning to be able to address humanitarian needs,” they add. “All member states should act in a joint spirit of solidarity and responsibility, especially in times when unity and common solutions are needed.”

Dijkhoff and Avramopoulos remind also especially the EU members “involved to   “involved have a responsibility and obligation to respect the European rules and put an end to the ‘wave through’ approach.”

Full statement here:

Joint Statement by Dutch Minister for Migration Klaas Dijkhoff and European Commissioner for Migration, Home Affairs and Citizenship, Dimitris Avramopoulos

Brussels, 23 February 2016

Joint Statement by Dutch Minister for Migration Klaas Dijkhoff and European Commissioner for Migration, Home Affairs and Citizenship, Dimitris Avramopoulos

Following the European Council and ahead of the Justice and Home Affairs Council of 25 February, we wish to express our joint determination to pursue a European approach to the refugee crisis.

We understand the pressure the different countries concerned are facing. We are concerned about the developments along the Balkan route and the humanitarian crisis that might unfold in certain countries especially in Greece.

The Dutch Presidency of the Council and the Commission are therefore in constant contact with all relevant actors and countries along the Western Balkans and are closely following the developments in the region and on the ground at the border crossings. However, all countries involved have a responsibility and obligation to respect the European rules and put an end to the ‘wave through’ approach. While doing so, Governments should take into account the effects in neighbouring countries.

We call on all countries and actors along the route to prepare the necessary contingency planning to be able to address humanitarian needs, including reception capacities. In parallel, the Commission is coordinating a contingency planning effort, to offer support in case of a humanitarian crisis both outside and within the EU, as well as to further coordinate border management.

All Member States should act in a joint spirit of solidarity and responsibility, especially in times when unity and common solutions are needed. The Commission and the Presidency are working hard on this, and the EU as a whole stands ready to assist. (via EC website)

For a change, the EU was quick to react to Austria’s Conference. Taking into consideration my comment and the time it was published I would dare say, that we were writing our posts on the same time. PM Tsipras had called his Dutch counterpart a couple of hours earlier, FM Kotzias had a demarche delivered to Vienna.

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25 comments

  1. “…and put an end to the ‘wave through’ approach.”

    As I said – return to Dublin and Schengen treaty. Very Good!

    • What are you gabbing about? Dublin is dead in the water; Schengen is operating, and really this is totally irrelevant to the Greek situation. The refugees do not enter Schengen via Greece and then travel with a Schengen visa or even illegally: they travel via non-Schengen countries. There is no relevance of Schengen to anything, this is just political blackmail to force Greece to do as it is told.
      ~
      I do despair with the political propaganda and crap that people are posting across the web. We seem to be a continent of incontinent morons.

      • why bother answering. you know long ago it brings nothing, trolls coming here are on pay-roll with the sole purpose to spread crap propaganda (and they want to do it for free lol).

        • The problem is that these malicious trolls are all over the web. Their propaganda is proving effective: we have to try to stop them.

          • no chance, waste of time & grey cells. you need to take a look at Greek internet. no chance to stop trolls in 3000 years. of course, I can ‘drown’ them right away comments work with moderation – but it’s fan to play with them for a while.

          • Give some argument instead – but you have none, right? 🙂

          • We had a similar case with one troll very much like this on OpenDemocracy today, in a post about Brexit. He was asserting his “superior knoweldge” of the functioning of the European Union and posting complete rubbish. However, about 5 people have spent half the day telling him what nonsense and propaganda he was posting, and he seems to have given up. The moderator removed some insults mixed up with the malakies, too. Maybe a success story?

          • they don;t give up, they move to next site

          • The dedicated trolls do: they are like vagrants, wandering from town to town. There are also right wing troll organising websites: we found a lot of them, directing people to debates (with topics of migration, Islam, climate change, criticism of Israel).
            ~
            But there are some trolls who are “accidental trolls” — just behving badly because they are idiots. These we can deter (maybe educate).

          • yes, accidental ‘trolls’ exist but they’re no trolls. they just do not know. we had 1-2-3 on and off here too.

          • I spoke too soon. The accidental troll on oD is now vomiting over everyone, telling us we are all idiots and only he knows how the EU works.

          • THIS is NOT accidental , I had some other people in mind, from the past.

          • KTG: you know, and I am serious, there is important knowledge that you and others who manage discussion sites have. Someone needs to publish a definitive guide on dealing with trolls, experts, loonies, and normal people online!

          • ah, everyone adds his salt corn to the internet salad

          • Giaourti Giaourtaki

            The term “troll” is discriminating against real trolls that only live under volcanoes in Island or in Italian Prog:discogs.com/artist/560713-New-Trolls.
            I guess it was invented fast as hell just like the racist term “Arabian Spring”

    • Giaourti Giaourtaki

      This “wave through” has cost Greece 2 billion Euro so far and was only possible because the ferries were not in use, also food was not needed for tourism but I guess it will be so much easier to let them drown with the country full of visitors.
      I still don’t get what you care, it’s not your beef, you don’t take any in, you don’t send ships, rescue-teams or any man-power even for Frontex – not to mention that the sent Frontex stuff is far from the needed 1800 and by Greece asked for since May 2015 – do you need some ship-loads of dead bodies wash up at your Danuna to wake up or are you just afraid they’d steal your beloved slave-job in Germoney?

  2. Funny to see you thinking. Everyone not agreeing with you is a troll and every european state not accepting greek propaganda is xenophobic, autoritarian, far right etc. A bit primitive, dont you think?
    P.S. Right now I am the only one in this website understanding the problem. None of you has any idea of european law, of european treaties etc. BTW: Do you know that according to Geneva convention the “refugee” MUST ASK for asylum in the next safe country he enters? No, surely you dont know it, you know only your greek fairy tales, am I right? For it means one thing – as there is NO WAR in Turkey, no one coming from there can be accepted as refugee UNLESS he passes a standard asylum procedure – in that procedure he must proove he is being persecuted etc. So much to “Schengen is operating”.

    • therefore you are Winner of our special Troll AWARD

    • 100% garbage, Please deposit it in the bin outside.

    • Giaourti Giaourtaki

      Refusing asylum starts with your criminal state(s) refusing to open the doors of its consulates and embassies in Damaskus and Kabul, rent some space to house them and give locals security jobs or send your army to protect them.

    • I don’t think it make sense to discuss here. People here simply do not want to follow elementary logics despite the word (logos) is from Greece. Under such conditions it is not a dialog (dia logos) but bla bla and waste of time.

      Ciao