Alternate Foreign Minister for European Affairs, Nikos Xydakis, said that Greece is the guard of the national and European borders and is not going to sink boats with children. Furthermore, he said that apart from being a border guard, Greece is “guardian of the European civilization” along with other member states standing by refugees, such as Germany, Austria, Sweden and others. He noted that Greece has rescued 104,000 children and adults so far in the Aegean Sea.

Xydakis stressed the need for quick implementation of the relocation program and pledged that so-called hotspots (identification centers) will be completed within a few days. The EU Joint Action Plan with Turkey to provide reduction to refugee flows and safe relocation from Turkish territory also needs to be applied.

Special emphasis was cast on the EU’s role in the refugee crisis with Xydakis pointing to finding a solution to the real problem – the war in Syria and humanitarian crisis in Lebanon, Jordan, and Turkey.