Orestiada, November 5 — Greek Minister of Citizen Protection Christos Papoutsis, French Minister of Immigration Éric Besson and Frontex Executive Director Ilkka Laitinen accompanied European Commissioner for Home Affairs Cecilia Malmström on a visit to the Greek-Turkish land border today to meet members of the Rapid Border Intervention Team (RABIT) deployed by Frontex at the request of the Greek government.

Following a tour of the border area around the northeast Greek town of Orestiada, the delegation went on to visit a detention centre for irregular migrants in Fylakio and were briefed on the latest situation by Greek authorities and Frontex. At a press conference after the visit, Commissioner Malmström praised the efforts of those involved and expressed commitment to finding long-term solutions to Greece’s migratory pressures.

“We have shown European solidarity,” she said. “Within ten days, officers from 25 countries have arrived here in the Orestiada area to assist the Greek authorities. This is also thanks to the excellent work of Frontex.”

The Commissioner went on to highlight the importance of collectively seeking longer- term measures to address Greece’s growing backlog of asylum claims.

“We’ve been working with Greece in recent years and are now also working together to find long-term solutions to enhance Greece’s asylum capacity,” Commissioner Malmström said.

Frontex Executive Director Ilkka Laitinen praised the rapid response of Member States to the first ever deployment of the Agency’s emergency response capability and the professionalism of both the guest officers and hosting authorities taking part. He cautioned however that border control is not a panacea and that the operation’s immediate objectives are three-fold.

“The aims of this operation are clearly defined and achievable,” the Frontex Executive Director said. “Firstly, to bring the situation under control — ensuring at all times that irregular migrants are properly identified and treated in line with our commitment to fundamental rights and human dignity. Secondly, we intend to have an impact on migratory flows in the area and, thirdly, to assist the Greek authorities in border management.”