Greece's Minister of Civil Protection, Takis Theodorikakos, stated that border guards arrested around 1,300 suspected smugglers along the Evros River, which forms the natural border with Turkey, throughout 2022.
Theodorikakos added, in a statement to Sky Radio, that during the same period, about 256,000 migrants were prevented from crossing the river, known as Evros in Greece, Marij in Turkey, and Maritsa in Bulgarian.
The infiltrators aimed to cross from Turkey into Greece, that is, within the borders of the European Union.
Human rights organizations accuse Athens of illegally returning people seeking a better future in Europe to Turkey.
Activists say the European Union is turning a blind eye to what Athens is doing.
On the other hand, Greece accuses Ankara of pushing migrants "forward", that is, to cross the border, which contradicts what is called pushback.
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