The out-of-control refugee crisis is not just testing the country, but our relationship with European institutions and allied countries in the Balkan neighborhood. Where we once feared a Grexit, now we are faced with even being isolated in the Balkans.
With Europe, perplexed paralyzed and unable to decide how it will ensure the essential management of the major migration waves, with the borders closed and Turkey refusing to agree on a joint plan for the crisis, the situation is growing increasingly desperate. The whole of Greece has turned into an endless hot spot, with camps being set up wherever one can imagine. And to think that a few months we closed the Amygdaleza camp, because it was unacceptable. Obviously this is not our fault, but the government delays definitely played part.
The critical battle for Greece and the future of Europe will be fought at the summit on the 7th of March. There it will become apparent whether the forces of understanding and solidarity prevail, or whether the group of nationalists will manage to erode the cohesion of Europe, with unforeseeable consequences for all. In this battle Greece needs allies, not opponents. Alliances are not forged with empty threats, but built on common values and interests.
The answer to the provocations of nationalists closing the borders cannot be to launch threats of isolation that lead nowhere. Of course in order to forge the necessary alliances, it is necessary to have unity on the interior. Unfortunately the government has neither. It is wasting itself on the usual media sensationalism and divisive conflicts that not only don’t solve the problems, they make them worse. Let us hope that we do not pay for these as well…
TO VIMA
