Brussels, 12/02/2016 (Agence Europe) - On Friday 12 February, the EU's economy and finance ministers approved Greece's Schengen evaluation report, which was adopted by the European Commission on 3 February. They also approved a series of 50 recommendations linked to this report, which are to be implemented in Greece within three months.
Greece voted against this draft decision as regards the recommendations to be followed, while Bulgaria and Cyprus abstained. This Greek rejection does not mean the country will not apply these recommendations, a diplomatic source assured on Thursday 11 February, but the country does not accept the report mentioning “serious shortcomings” at its borders. Greece also says that an inspection mission has already taken place there (see EUROPE 11488) - more precisely on Chios and Samos and the sites of Orestiada, Fylakio, Kastanies and Nea Vyssa on 10-13 November 2015.
Athens gives assurances that things have now changed since November. In a progress report published on 10 February (see EUROPE 11487), the Commission itself noted progress in the digital fingerprinting of migrants arriving in Greece - the rate having increased from 8% in September 2015 to 78% in January 2016.
The Commission and ministers have nevertheless asked Greece to implement 50 recommendations to improve its border management - the ultimate risk being to have to activate Article 26 of the Schengen Code, which would allow Schengen member states to re-establish controls at their internal borders in a coordinated manner in three months if they should deem the situation has not improved.
The decision adopted on the series of recommendations aimed at remedying “the serious shortcomings” observed during the evaluation visit recognises the specific geographical situation of Greece, which has “particularly affected” it. Using an argument that Greece had put forward at a permanent ambassadors' meeting on 10 February and that it had then included in a written statement, the decision states that these migration flows (over a million people arrived in the EU in 2015) would have the effect of putting severe pressure on the external borders of any member state.
The adopted decision also takes account of the measures that Athens has implemented since this visit to manage the crisis. However, the adopted text says that Greece still needs to make progress - especially on registration procedures (for example, on the quality of digital fingerprints collected), monitoring at sea (by patrolling more frequently), border control procedures, risk analysis, human resources and training, infrastructure and international cooperation (especially by cooperating at local level with Turkish authorities). The adopted text also states that given the situation, the overall functioning of Schengen is in serious danger. (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic)