Turkey will not take back migrants already on Greek islands, said Minister for European Affairs of Turkey Volkan Bozkır on Thursday.

The deal between Turkey and the European Union to readmit immigrants does not apply to refugees and immigrants already on Greek islands but to those who arrive once the agreement is in effect, according to Anadolu agancy media.

The number of immigrants Turkey will take back will be in the thousands or tens of thousands, not in the millions, Bozkir stated on his Twitter account, according to Anadolu.