Greece has announced it will extend the steel barrier along its border with Türkiye, which it has built to prevent migration along the Maritsa area.

According to state agency AMNA’s news report, a national security government council has decided that the fence be gradually expanded along the border.

It said that it would separately evaluate which areas would be prioritized in the process while border patrols would be enhanced.

The meeting was attended by the Ministers of Foreign Affairs, Defense, Citizen Protection, Immigration and Asylum, Shipping, Climate Change and Civil Protection, as well as the National Intelligence Service and Chiefs of Staff.

Minister of Immigration and Asylum Notis Mitarakis, in an interview with SKAI Radio channel last week, announced that the fences would be extended by 80 kilometers (50 miles).

Athens built a 40 kilometer-long steel barrier on the land border between Türkiye and Greece to prevent irregular migration, and the construction process was completed in August 2021.

In recent years, hundreds of thousands have made short but perilous journeys across the Aegean to reach Northern and Western Europe in search of a better life.

Greece on the other side, has frequently engaged in pushbacks to prevent migrants from entering the country.

Türkiye has repeatedly condemned Greece's illegal practice of pushing back asylum-seekers, stating it violates humanitarian values and international law by endangering the lives of vulnerable migrants, including women and children.

Pushbacks are considered contrary to international refugee protection agreements that say people should not be expelled or returned to a country where their life or safety might be in danger due to their race, religion, nationality, or membership in a social or political group.