Greece plans to build wall along Turkish border to deter migrant crossings
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Greece’s government says it has finalized plans to extend a wall along its northeast border with Turkey over concerns migrants may try to stage mass crossings into the European Union country.
Government spokesperson Stelios Petsas said Monday that Greece would add 26 kilometres to an existing 10-kilometre section by the end of April.
The project would cost about 63-million-euro ($97.7 million Cdn), he said.
A standoff occurred at the border earlier this year after Turkey said it would no longer prevent migrants trying to reach the European Union (EU), and tens of thousands tried to cross into Greece.
The two countries are also at odds over energy rights in the eastern Mediterranean — a dispute that has triggered a dangerous military buildup in the region and fuelled fears of conflict.
Four Greek construction companies have been selected to build the new wall and upgrade the existing section of fencing running along or close to the Evros River, which forms much of the border between the two countries.
They will use galvanized square steel tubes and concrete foundations to build the wall, Greece’s public order ministry said.
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis visited the border region on Saturday after a test installation of a section of the new wall.
The number of migrants and refugees travelling from Turkey to Greece fell sharply this year during the pandemic and after the border standoff prompted tougher border policing. Turkey has accused Greece of illegally pushing back migrants reaching its islands in the eastern Aegean Sea, a charge that Athens denies.
Turkey hosts the largest number of refugees worldwide, at nearly 4 million people, mostly from Syria, according to the UN Refugee Agency.
According to the World Factbook maintained by the CIA, the total border distance shared by Greece and Turkey is 192 kilometres.
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SOURCE NEWS