Greece proposes suspending asylum requests in emergencies
The plan would let member states pause asylum processing, speed returns and deploy Frontex during exceptional influxes, officials said.
- On Thursday, Greek Migration Minister Thanos Plevris proposed an emergency mechanism in Luxembourg to temporarily suspend asylum applications during mass migration crises, presenting the proposal to the Home Affairs Council.
- Plevris justified the proposed "Special Derogation Regime" by referencing the July Ceuta influx, where more than 72,000 migrants entered the Spanish enclave, prompting calls for tougher measures against what officials term "hybrid attacks."
- On Thursday, EU interior ministers approved a new Return Regulation allowing member states to establish return hubs outside the bloc, with the Group of Five—Greece, the Netherlands, Germany, Austria, and Denmark—aiming to identify a host country this year.
- The group plans to finalize a host country agreement by year-end, with transfers to external hubs scheduled to begin in 2027 under the newly approved framework.
- Critics and Council of Europe human rights commissioner Michael O'Flaherty warn that suspending asylum rights risks unraveling established human rights law, creating a dangerous precedent despite government claims these measures address security threats.
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42 Articles
Plevris Pitches Mitsotakis's Emergency Migration Plan to EU Ministers in Luxembourg - iefimerida.gr
Greek Migration Minister Thanos Plevris has told EU counterparts that Europe needs emergency tools to handle sudden migration crises, presenting Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis's proposal for a new Emergency Support Mechanism at a meeting of the EU's Justice and Home Affairs Council. Arriving at the council session, Mr. Plevris said the EU's Migration Pact and Returns Regulation have started delivering results, with migration flows to Europe …
At a Council of Ministers held on Thursday, 1 October, Athens proposed to the EU Member States an "emergency mechanism" aimed at temporarily suspending the right of asylum in the event of "instrumentalisation of migration flows".
Deutsche Welle
EU ministers mull new ways to curb irregular migration
The proposals include setting up so-called return hubs outside the EU and strengthening the border agency Frontex. Greece has even proposed temporarily suspending asylum applications in emergency situations.
Greece proposes that the European Union may temporarily suspend the right to apply for asylum in the event of a massive influx of migrants or when migration is used by third countries as a hybrid threat. The measure, which would allow for the acceleration of returns, is supported by several Member States and could be included in a new European emergency mechanism.
GREECE proposed to the EU the suspension of the right to asylum in crisis situations of a mass influx of migrants. The proposal is supported by part of the members, but criticized by human rights organizations.
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