Greece is calling on the European Union to create an emergency mechanism that would allow member states to temporarily suspend asylum applications during major migration surges.
Greek Migration and Asylum Minister Thanos Plevris presented the proposal at a meeting of EU interior ministers in Luxembourg on October 1. He argued that the measures available under the EU’s migration pact are not sufficient to deal with sudden and unusually large arrivals, pointing to the mass movement of migrants into Spain’s North African enclave of Ceuta in July.
Spain estimates that more than 72,000 people entered Ceuta from Morocco during the July crisis. Most have since left the enclave, but around 10,000 people are still there, according to recent reports. The episode has prompted renewed discussions among EU governments about border controls and emergency migration measures.
Plevris said that in such situations, the EU should strengthen border surveillance and allow asylum procedures to be suspended temporarily. Greece has argued that a special emergency mechanism is needed for exceptional circumstances involving a rapid increase in arrivals and pressure on border infrastructure.
The proposal has received support from some EU governments. Dutch Migration Minister Bart van den Brink backed the idea of treating a mass arrival such as the one in Ceuta primarily as a border-management situation rather than a normal asylum matter.
However, any new emergency mechanism would have to operate within European and international legal obligations. EU Migration Commissioner Magnus Brunner said stronger border protection must be accompanied by respect for fundamental rights.
The European Commission is also working on a broader emergency framework for sudden and large-scale migration movements. The discussions come as EU countries seek additional measures to respond to what they describe as exceptional or potentially organised migration pressures at the bloc’s external borders.
The debate comes as irregular arrivals to the EU have fallen this year, while returns have increased. Greece says the existing migration pact has contributed to those developments but maintains that additional powers are needed for exceptional situations.
EU ministers have also approved new rules strengthening the bloc’s return system. The rules allow member states to establish return hubs in non-EU countries for people who have no legal right to remain, provided the arrangements comply with fundamental rights and international legal obligations.
Greece is working with Germany, Austria, Denmark and the Netherlands on plans for such a return hub outside the EU. The five countries have been discussing possible locations and the framework for operating the centres, with Greece aiming for a facility to become operational during its EU presidency in the second half of 2027.
The proposals are part of a wider EU debate over how to manage sudden migration movements while maintaining access to asylum procedures and compliance with refugee and human-rights protections.