EU to pay Turkey millions to boost its coast guard

The European Union is preparing to pay Turkey tens of millions to help bolster its coast guard, a senior EU official said Wednesday, as increasing numbers of migrants and refugees are leaving Turkey in hopes of finding sanctuary or jobs in Europe.

Greek authorities are struggling to cope with a sharp rise in the number of migrant arrivals over the summer months on the island of Lesbos and other Greek islands in the eastern Aegean Sea near the Turkish coast. EU-funded refugee camps on those islands are facing severe overcrowding, poor living conditions and outbreaks of violence.

Maciej Popowski, the deputy director-general for EU enlargement policy, told EU lawmakers that Turkey directly requested more money from EU Migration Commissioner Dimitris Avramopoulos during talks in Ankara in early October.

 

Via AP

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