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Greece is planning to deploy naval warships near Libyan territory to curb irregular migration to the country, Prime Minister Mitotakis said on Monday.
During a meeting with Greece President Constantinos Tazooras, Mitotakis said the move followed an emergency meeting of the Ministerial Conference on Sunday.
“Unfortunately, we’ve seen a few recent incidents, which have led us to act more strongly in preventive and deterrent ways,” the Greek prime minister said.
Last week, Greece saw a surge in immigrant arrivals, with 731 migrants, including many children, arriving on Crete and Gabdos islands within 24 hours. Most immigrants came from Egypt, Eritrea, Pakistan and Sudan and left Libya.
Mitsotakis said the move “sends a message that “immigrants) smugglers will not be responsible for entering our country, both as a precaution and invariably in conjunction with the Libyan authorities and other European forces.”
“That is an essential move under the current circumstances and I think clearly the issue of Libya will be raised at the Council of Europe next Thursday. I think there are relevant conclusions that fully cover the Greek position,” he added.
arrival It has risen sharply More than 60,000 migrants landed in Greece last year, according to data from the UN Refugee Agency.
By mid-June 2025, Greece had recorded 16,290 arrivals, of which over 14,600 were at sea.
As Greek authorities are stepping up patrols along the eastern maritime border with Turkey, it appears that traffickers are increasingly choosing longer and more dangerous routes across the Mediterranean from North Africa, using larger boats that can carry more people.
