The construction of a barbed-wire fence along the Greek-Turkish border in the Evros region to deter immigrants entering is one of the government’s top priorities, Deputy Citizen Protection Minister Manolis Othonas said last week.
Speaking on a visit to border police station at Ferres, he said it will be ready in five months. The 12.5km fence on the western stretch of the Evros River, opposite the Turkish city of Edirne, is aimed at limiting the number of migrants trying to cross into the country.
It will be modeled on a similar barrier around the Spanish enclave of Ceuta on the north African coast of Morocco. Othonos also announced the creation of temporary reception centres near the Greek-Turkish border. According to Frontex, the European Union’s border security organisation, some 113,000 illegal crossings at EU borders were recorded in the first nine months of 2011. The vast majority were from north Africa.
