Greece wants Turkey to take 10,000 migrants after deadly fireOctober 1, 2019 - 15:35 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Thousands of migrants at overcrowded migrant camps on the island of Lesbos in Greece should return to Turkey, the Greek government agreed a day after a deadly fire broke out at the Moria migrant camp. By the end of 2020, Athens wants 10,000 migrants to return to Turkey, in a bid to ease pressure on the overcrowded camps, the government said in a statement following the four-hour Cabinet meeting, Deutsche Welle reports. The move signals a significant change in policy, as conservative Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis enacts a more hard-line approach to the migrant situation in the country. In a statement, the Athens government said the 10,000 would be an increase from the "1,805 returned in the 4.5 years under the previous (left-wing) Syriza government." Mitsotakis announced further measures such as more naval patrols in the Aegean, closing centers for migrants refused asylum, and plans to overhaul the asylum system, including building camps for those deemed "illegal" or who have been refused asylum. Photo. UNHCR Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads. Partner news | Armenia to participate in key EU meeting for the first time ever National Assembly speaker Alen Simonyan has said that Armenia will for the first time participate in the Conference. U.S. reacts to Russia’s criticism of upcoming Armenia-EU-U.S. meeting Matthew Miller has weighed in on Russia’s criticism of an upcoming Armenia-EU-U.S. meeting. Lavrov sees ‘collapse’ of Russia’s ties with Armenia Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has underscored heightened tensions between Russia and Armenia. Russia warns Armenia against “falling into West’s trap” Zakharova maintained, however, that anything that will benefit the people of Armenia can only be welcomed. |