Greek PM urges for more swift action to address refugee crisis

Greeck Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras on Tuesday urged for more swift measures to address the refugee crisis while welcoming the resolution of the latest EU-Turkey summit in Brussels.

The meeting of EU leaders with Turkey, the second in five months, ended on Monday night with an initial agreement that the flow of refugees and migrants from Turkey into Greece must be curbed.

Under the new agreement, Greece will receive additional financial aid to assist the refugees and migrants trapped on its territory.

Tsipras stressed the need to take more steps quickly as thousands of refugees have been queuing under the rain for several days in inhumane conditions in the Greek border town of Idomeni. The refugees are hoping to cross into Macedonia after the closing of borders in Austria and many Balkan states beginning in mid-February.

Tsipras appeared content that the dialogue has now shifted from shutting down borders and trapping migrants in Greece towards a solution to curb refugee flows by strengthening collaboration with Turkey.

More than 2.5 million refugees fleeing wars are currently in Turkey. Ankara has asked for more financial aid for their accommodation, which would be further discussed in another EU summit in Brussels on March 17-18.

Turkey also requested the lifting of visa requirements for Turkish nationals travelling to the EU and the acceleration of negotiations for its accession to the group.

However, until this new deal is finalized, the bargaining among all sides will continue, and strict limits on the number of refugees allowed to enter from Macedonia and the other states along the Balkan route will remain.

On Tuesday Greece and Turkey held a meeting in the Turkish city of Izmir on the readmission of migrants who enter Greece from Turkey but are ineligible for asylum.

At the end of the Brussels summit the Greek leader said that the Izmir gathering was a "historic meeting that can be a first step to combat human traffickers" exploiting refugees seeking to cross the Aegean Sea.

Official statistics showed more than a million migrants have entered Europe via the Aegean Sea since 2015. On average more than 1,000 people per day continue to board risky boats despite adverse weather conditions to reach the Greek islands.

According to the latest data from the Greek Coast Guard, more than 4,700 people were rescued over the past week in 91 different incidents in the Aegean. In 2015, the Greek Coast Guard saved about 100,000 people, while more than 350 refugees and migrants -- half of them children and infants -- drowned.

According to the newly established Greek Coordinating Centre for the Management of Migration, more than 33,500 refugees are currently in Greece: about 8,000 are in tents at the Idomeni border crossing, more than 6,000 on Greek islands, almost 2,500 at Piraeus' port terminals and the rest scattered across overwhelmed reception facilities throughout the country.

Greek government officials say the situation will improve by next week, as authorities are working nonstop to deliver more 17,000 beds to hosting centers across Greece.

Athens was given a deadline by its European partners in February to fulfill its commitments under autumn's EU agreement on the refugee crisis and build sufficient facilities to host refugees by May. Otherwise, the country may face expulsion from the European passport-free Schengen zone for up to two years. Endi