Guarantee of safety the blend of proper migration policy, Koumoutsakos says

The respect to human rights and the guarantee of safety is the wager for a proper migration policy applied in a democratic state, said Alternate Citizen Protection Minister responsible for migration Giorgos Koumoutsakos speaking to Athens-Macedonian News Agency's radio "Praktoreio 104.9" on Monday.

Referring to the transfer of migrants and refugees from Lesvos to the mainland, Koumoutsakos noted that "it is held to help decongest the islands" and will be completed in two phases. "It is a complex procedure, not a simple one," he underlined.

"You cannot pile up people. It is a very delicate and serious operation that refers to a specific category of people, either vulnerable or families with children," he said.

On the hike recorded in the refugees and migrants flows to the Greek islands in the last period, Koumoutsakos characterised it a "real upsurge" adding that it started in June and continues until today and considering what happened in the previous years it will continue in September.

Referring to prime minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis' visit to Germany and the talks on the migration-refugees issue, Koumoutsakos said that Greece's views on the management of the refugees crisis mostly align with Germany's. Germany plays a key role and we agree on the view that there must be a European solidarity mechanism on the fairer allocation of the burden which the Eastern Mediterranean, and particularly Greece, are maily bearing along with a European mechanism on the repatriation of migrants and refugees to third countries.