Greek Minister of Civil Protection Michalis Chrysochoidis has revealed that another 400 border guards will be recruited to man the border in addition to the 400 previously announced by the government.
Minister Chrysochoidis made the announcement on Tuesday during a visit to the Evros border region and was welcomed by local vice mayor Dimitris Petrovic, who took to Facebook to thank the minister for increasing the contingent of border guards.
“Recruitment of more (more than 400) border guards in Evros was our permanent request, and we thank the minister,” Petrovic said.
According to a report from Greek newspaper Kathimerini, Minister Chrysochoidis met with other local officials in the region to talk about the national government’s plans to expand the border fence in Evros as well.
The paper stated that the minister was also discussing monetary compensation for landowners in the area where the new fencing will be built.
Vice Mayor Petrovic told Greek media that the border guards and the extension of the border fence would bring jobs to the region and could encourage young people in the area to stay rather than look for work elsewhere.
Earlier this month, Greek Deputy Minister of Migration and Asylum Giorgos Koumoutsakos warned that Turkey under the leadership of Recep Tayyip Erdogan could unleash another wave of migrants later this month if the European Union imposes sanctions over Turkey’s activities in the Mediterranean.
Koumoutsakos also claimed that migrant pressure along the border had begun to increase again after largely dying down due to restrictions placed along the border area by Turkey following the outbreak of the Chinese coronavirus pandemic.
In February, Erdogan deliberately opened the gates to Europe, and Greek officials claim that at least 50,000 migrants attempted to cross the border before it was shut down in March.