European Commissioner for Migration, Home Affairs and Citizenship Dimtiris Avramopoulos oversaw the first relocation of refugees within the European Union on Friday.
Avramopoulos greeted the 19 refugees from Eritrea who were departing from Lempedusa, Italy to Sweden. This relocation is the first of an expected series that will take place in the following months in response to the refugee crisis.
“I understand the reasons that brought you here. I hope you understand that we try to help,” European Commission spokesperson Natasha Bertaud quotes Avramopoulos as telling migrants and refugees, via a twitter post.
The European Union recently ratified a plan that will separate 160,000 refugees among the different EU member states. The United Nations estimates that over 400,000 migrants and refugees have arrived in Greece in 2015.
“The first relocation exercise is a small but significant step, symbolic of a Europe that shows solidarity,” Betraud further quotes Avramopoulos as saying.
.@FrontexEU + #EASO working in first operational #hotspot in #Lampedusa. @Avramopoulos #RefugeeCrisis pic.twitter.com/JlP6argSu3
— Natasha Bertaud (@NatashaBertaud) October 9, 2015
First relocation in #Italy is symbolic of a Europe that takes responsibility&shows solidarity http://t.co/yCGwskN1dD pic.twitter.com/khg0deoyIg
— DimitrisAvramopoulos (@Avramopoulos) October 9, 2015
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