Minister of Citizen Protection, Takis Theodorikakos, met yesterday in Alexandroupolis with Serbian Minister of Interior, Aleksandar Vulin.

During the talks, the strong ties of friendship and cooperation between the two countries were once again confirmed, while the two officials discussed at length about illegal immigration flows, with reference to Turkey’s exploitation of suffering people.

More specifically, they confirmed the excellent relationship and cooperation between the two countries in dealing with illegal immigration, the dismantling of trafficking networks, and organized crime in general, while they also visited the fence in Poros.

The two Ministers agreed on their cooperation in dealing with traffickers’ networks, underlining that immigration is not merely a problem of Greece and Serbia, but of the entire of Europe.  

At the same time, Mr. Theodorikakos underlined that Greece and Serbia are joining forces, strengthening cooperation between them, police cooperation to jointly deal with criminal traffickers of illegal immigrants, mentioning that already in 2022, more than 1,100 traffickers are now in the hands of Greek justice and will face the penalties they deserve.

In the presence of the General Secretary of Public Order, Michael Karamalakis, and Greek and Serbian high-ranking police officers, the two Ministers signed an agreement for joint patrols in tourist destinations of the two countries. 

With reference to yesterday’s Agreement signing between Serbia and Greece for the realization of joint patrols by the police authorities of the two countries during the high season, Mr. Theodorikakos clarified that these will take place in order to consolidate and strengthen precisely this feeling of security among the citizens of the two countries when they visit each other’s homeland.

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Mr. Vulin asked Mr. Theodorikakos to thank Prime Minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, on behalf of Serbian President, Aleksandar Vucic, for his stance during the European Summit in Prague, but also for the firm position of Greece on the issue of Kosovo.

Also, he pointed out the high level of cooperation between Serbia and Greece with reference to the brotherly relations between the peoples.

Mr. Vulin stated that illegal immigration is an issue that exerts pressure on both countries, noting that Serbia is against the instrumentalization of immigrants and their use as a means of pressure on a country – especially Greece – and their exploitation for political reasons.

With reference to the signing of the Greece-Serbia Agreement for the realization of joint patrols by the police authorities of the two countries, he clarified that Serbian citizens feel absolutely safe in Greece and that this agreement is a way to help our Greek colleagues and also to send a message to citizens about exactly where they are safe.

The last stop was the fence in Feres. There Mr. Theodorikakos informed his Serbian counterpart about the extension of the fence along Evros and about the “Akritas” project.

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