As a country on the external border of the European Union, Greece plays a key role in the successful implementation of the Common European Asylum System. It is also one of the main sources of secondary migration to Germany. Federal Minister of the Interior and Community Nancy Faeser therefore travelled to Athens to discuss policy issues. She also made a working visit to the Greek island of Kos.

Advancing a common European migration policy

Federal Minister Faeser spoke with Greece’s Minister for Migration and Asylum Nikolaos Panagiotopoulos about the reform of the Common European Asylum System (CEAS) and about applying the Dublin procedure and limiting irregular migration.

Rapid implementation of the CEAS reform is a top priority for Germany. In November, the Federal Government adopted two legislative proposals for implementing the CEAS reform package. The German Bundestag must agree to the proposals in order for the legislation to enter into force. "Our bills on CEAS reform send an important signal in Europe, demonstrating that Germany is putting the new law into practice quickly and comprehensively. Greece is an important partner in this effort," Federal Minister Faeser said. The EU member states have until June 2026 to implement the CEAS reform.

Cooperation across borders

Federal Minister Faeser also met with Michalis Chrysochoidis, Greece’s Minister for Citizens’ Protection, to discuss border protection, border police cooperation, illegal migration and human smuggling. "We want to address these issues at as early a stage as possible and help Greece protect the EU’s external borders. Close and trusting cooperation is very important to us for preventing unlawful secondary migration from Greece to Germany," Federal Minister Faeser said.

Greece and Germany have shared concerns not only when it comes to migration; the two countries also work well together in the field of disaster management. In the framework of the EU Civil Protection Mechanism (ECPM), Germany’s federal and state governments have in recent years provided Greece with support to fight wildfires. In summer 2023, for example, the state of Bavaria supplied firefighters and two firefighting aircraft.

Providing for and integrating refugees

Federal Minister Faeser’s trip also focused on the situation of asylum applicants in Greece. Together with representatives of the political foundations Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung and Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung, the federal minister met with representatives of the non-governmental organisations Médecins Sans Frontières, the Greek Council for Refugees and Caritas Hellas, which help to receive newly arrived refugees in Greece and to care for and integrate them.

During her working visit to the island of Kos, Federal Minister Faeser met with Vice-Governor Konstantina Svinou and Mayor Nikitaras A. Theodosis to learn more about the situation of refugees on the island. Afterwards, the federal minister visited a local refugee accommodation centre.