On Monday 22 May, the European Commission called on the Greek authorities to launch an independent investigation into videos revealed by the New York Times that showed, according to the newspaper, Greek coastguards turning back a group of migrants to Turkey, including children, by making them get out of a van and onto a makeshift ship.
The videos, dating from April and revealed on 19 May, before the country’s parliamentary elections, “cannot be verified” by the Commission, the institution announced on 22 May, calling on the Greek government to get to the bottom of the allegations.
In the morning, EU Home Affairs Commissioner Ylva Johansson said on Twitter that she had sent a “formal request” to the Greek government to investigate the alleged pushback.
She also called on Athens to base their investigation on the independent mechanism for monitoring the actions of Greek coastguards at external borders, agreed with the Commission in 2022, which aims to prevent violence and pushbacks against migrants.
The Commissioner promised that the institution “stands ready to take formal steps, as appropriate”. (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic)