The EU has told migrants in Turkey that Europe’s doors are closedas Greek and Turkish police fired teargas at their shared border amid growing tensions over the plight of Syria’s refugees.
In a blunt message, the EU’s foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, said: “Don’t go to the border. The border is not open. If someone tells you that you can go because the border is open … that is not true.
Tensions flared last weekend when the Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, declared he was “opening the doors” because Turkey could no longer cope with refugees fleeing Idlib province, the last remaining rebel stronghold in Syria.
Thousands of refugees and migrants have since attempted to reach Greece via its land or sea borders. Greek riot police have been using teargas and water cannon to repel people trying to get into the country, while Turkish police have been firing volleys of teargas towards Greece in return.
EU ministers did not agree to add to the €6bn promised in 2016 under the terms of a migration deal with Ankara. The EU has allocated €4.5bn to Syrian refugee aid in Turkey, but only €3.4bn has been spent.
On his return from Moscow, Erdoğan signalled there was no change in policy. “Our gates are open. The refugees will go as far as they can,” Turkey’s state-run Anadolu news agency quoted him as saying.
Turkey has also announced it is sending 1,000 special operations police to prevent Greek authorities from returning people who manage to cross, raising the prospect of vulnerable people trapped indefinitely in a no-man’s land.
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