EU to Greece: Tighten Borders, Or Else

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Earlier this month, the European Union presented Greece with a three-month ultimatum to increase border security and remedy “deficiencies” in controlling the flow of migrants and refugees through the country’s porous borders, or be imposed with border controls with the rest of the Schengen passport-free zone.

The decision comes after weeks of deliberations between Greece and its EU partners, following intensifying pressure on Greece to deal with the worst refugee crisis to plague the continent since World War II.

According to a report from the EU executive body, the European Commission, Greece has been failing to fingerprint and register migrants as they arrived in the country.

“It is of utmost importance that Greece addresses the issues identified in the report adopted by the Commission as a matter of priority and urgency,” said EU ministers in the adopted recommendations, according to EU sources.

According to the recommendations, Greece must “within one month … establish an action plan to remedy the deficiencies… (and) within three months of the same date, it shall report on the implementation,” Greek daily I Kathimerini reports.

If Greece fails to comply and remedy the issues outlined by the report by the middle of May, EU authorities could permit individual member states to enact exceptional border controls within the EU’s Schengen zone, including with Greece. The border controls could be up for up to two years, instead of the currently allowed six month, and could herald an end to the EU’s cherished passport-free regime.

Germany introduced border controls end of last year, along with other EU member states, and has recently extended them until May, according to the current allowed limit.