23 Aug 2021; MEMO: The Greek government on Friday announced that it has finished building a 40-kilometre long wall along its border with Turkey, CNN International reported.
Greece took the decision amid concerns that NATO's withdrawal from Afghanistan after 20 years of occupation could cause an influx of people seeking asylum in Europe making their way through Iran, Turkey, and then onto Greece.
On Friday, the ministers from the Greek government toured the wall and said the overthrow of the Afghan government has increased the urgency of their effort to reduce the flow of migrants across.
Greece's Citizens' Protection Minister Michalis Chrisochoidis said on Friday that the situation in Afghanistan will cause a large influx into Europe.
"We cannot wait, passively, for the possible impact," Chrisochoidis told reporters. "Our borders will remain safe and inviolable."
Chrisochoidis said a 12.5-kilometre fence had been completed in recent days with an automated electronic monitoring system.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan discussed Afghanistan in a phone call on Friday, with Erdogan saying Afghanistan and Iran – a key route for Afghans into Turkey – should be supported or a new migration wave was "inevitable", a statement from his office said.
