Athens vows action against Macedonia after Skopje turns away Afghans
5,000 migrants stuck on the border and 3,000 stranded in Greek capital
Skopje, in turn, blamed Serbia for doing the same on its southern border
German Minister attacked Austria for only accepting 80 migrants a day
http://dollars-vedioonline.blogspot.com/2016/02/migrant-crisis-heats-up-again-8000-are.html
Tensions mounted over the migrant crisis again today after countries imposed their own border controls that created huge backlogs and further threatened to destroy the passport-free travel zone.
Athens today vowed to take action against Macedonia after Skopje refused to accept Afghans refugees, leaving more than 8,000 stranded in Greece.
Skopje, in turn, blamed Serbia for doing the same on its southern border with Macedonia.
Meanwhile, Germany lashed out at Austria's decision to accept just 80 asylum seekers a day – while letting thousands of others pass through.
Afghan children wait with their families at a refugee camp on the Greek-Macedonian border. Greece said it was taking action to persuade Macedonia to accept Afghan migrants after thousands were stranded at its border
There are fears the unilateral controls and daily caps could trigger a domino effect along the Balkan migrant trail and leave thousands stranded in Greece, the entry point into the EU for many.
Greece said today it was taking diplomatic action to persuade Macedonia to accept Afghan migrants after thousands were stranded at its border and main port.
'We have begun diplomatic moves... we believe the problem will be resolved,' junior interior minister for migration Yiannis Mouzalas told parliamentary television, without elaborating.
Some 5,000 refugees are stuck at the border with Macedonia after the neighbouring state on Sunday refused to allow passage to Afghans, police said.
Another 3,000 people were blocked in Athens after landing at the port of Piraeus from the Aegean islands, a government source said, adding that officials were scrambling to find room for them.
'We do not expect a (diplomatic) solution today,' the source said, adding: 'We will accommodate the Afghans while trying to prevent overcrowding at any of the facilities available.'
Macedonian authorities reportedly said that Serbia has done the same on its southern border with Macedonia.
Since November, countries on the Balkan route have allowed only Syrians, Iraqis and Afghans to continue their journey northwards towards Germany, Sweden and other European nations where they plan to apply for asylum.
'We are making preparations so that even if the problem is not resolved, if there is a violation of European decisions by Serbia and Skopje, to be able to manage the problem that will be created in Greece,' Mouzalas said.
Domino effect: Moves by Austria and Macedonia are the latest unilateral actions taken by EU countries to stem the migrant flow as the bloc tries to cope with the continent's worst migrat crisis since World War Two
It came as German Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere branded Austria's decision to allow just 80 migrants in each day 'unacceptable' and said it sends out 'the wrong signal' to the rest of Europe.
Berlin fears many of these migrants are heading straight for Germany, where tensions are on the rise after the country saw an influx of over a million asylum seekers last year, putting huge pressure on Chancellor Angela Merkel's open-door policy.
'It won't work if some countries think they can solve the problem by putting extra weight on Germany's back,' de Maiziere told ARD public television, accusing Vienna of failing to carry out adequate checks on those being let through.
Despite strong objections from the European Union, Austria on Friday introduced a daily limit of 80 migrants who are allowed to claim asylum while allowing 3,200 migrants a day to transit through.
'Even for security reasons, this is unacceptable.
'We won't allow this to continue long term,' de Maiziere said, adding that he intended to bring up the issue at the next gathering of EU interior ministers in Brussels on Thursday.
Migrants walk along a road to cross the Greek-Macedonian border near the village of Idomeni on Sunday
The asylum cap 'is an Austrian decision', he said. 'But to say that 3,200 can continue towards Germany is the wrong signal,' he added.
'The figure is much too high. We won't accept it and that's why we need to talk about this.'
Vienna said it would beef up the army at its borders to deal with the inflow of migrants, with 450 more troops from today and military police on standby in case of trouble.
The troops will assist police carrying out checks on people and vehicles entering the country, patrol the 'green border' and carry out surveillance work, the defence ministry said.
Meanwhile, Hungary has reported a sharp rise in the numbers of migrants breaching its southern borders in February, the first significant surge since the frontiers were sealed last year.
Around 1,500 migrants tried to enter the EU member state illegally from Serbia this month, with 500 alone caught between Friday and Sunday, police said in a statement.
Men sit near train tracks as migrants from Afghanistan wait for permission to cross from Macedonia to Serbia
Many were economic migrants from Morocco, Iran and Pakistan, police said. Unlike Syrians, they are unlikely to be granted asylum in Europe and face deportation.
About 300,000 refugees passed through Hungary last year, before right-wing Prime Minister Viktor Orban sealed off the southern borders with razor wire and fences in September and October.
The measures – together with tight border patrols and tough new laws punishing illegal entry and vandalism of the fences – slowed the flow to a trickle with only around a dozen people a day attempting to cross.
Since September, 1,325 people have been charged with crimes under the new legislation, the vast majority served with expulsion orders.
The move by EU countries to impose border controls further jeopardises Europe's Schengen passport-free travel zone.
Underscoring the urgency of the issue, Mr de Maiziere said member states must agree a common approach within two weeks if they wanted to prevent the system collapsing.
In addition to being a devastating symbolic setback for Europe, a collapse of Schengen would increase the amount of time it takes for goods to be transported across European borders, raising costs for companies and consumers.
A study by Germany's Bertelsmann Foundation revealed it could cost the EU up to €1.4trillion over the next decade.
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