Greece Moves to End Asylum Claims for All Maritime Migrants From Libya
Greece's government is seeking to close its doors to asylum-seekers from North Africa amidst a surge of maritime migration and a breakdown in talks with the militia that governs eastern Libya.
"The Greek government sends a message . . . to all smugglers and all their potential clients that the money they spend is completely wasted," said Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis in a statement.
Human smugglers in Libya have developed a new, long-distance human smuggling route departing Tobruk for the southern Greek islands. The 180-nautical-mile voyage is attracting passengers, especially migrants from Egypt, Eritrea, Sudan, Pakistan, Yemen and Bangladesh. Officials in Crete and its outlying islands say that these arrivals put strain on small local economies; more than 7,000 people have arrived on Greek shores on this route so far this year, and Greece has stated its plans to put a stop to it.
In late June, Prime Minister Mitsotakis ordered two destroyers to watch over waters near Libya and work with local militia forces to deter migration. This requires coordinating with authorities under Gen. Khalifa Haftar, the Benghazi-based warlord (and American citizen) who governs the eastern half of Libya. However, talks broke down before they could start: on Tuesday, Haftar's government declared EU migration minister Magnus Brunner persona non grata and ordered him deported upon his arrival at Benghazi's airport. Brunner's counterparts from Italy, Greece and Malta received the same treatment. All had arrived to talk over migration issues, and Haftar's government accused all of them of "flagrant contravention of established diplomatic norms and international convention."
The details of the dust-up were not disclosed, but the reaction from Athens was swift. The following day, Mitsotakis announced legislation to close the borders to all asylum seekers from Libya. The bill will be introduced in parliament tomorrow, and if it passes, it will close down asylum processing for all maritime migrants from North Africa for an initial period of three months.