Migrant crisis: common and comprehensive European responsive called for

(Vatican Radio) Turkey is under growing pressure to consider a major escalation in migrant deportations from Greece. European Council President Donald Tusk said, ``we agree that the refugee flows still remain far too high,'' after meeting Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu.

Tusk is also due to hold talks on the migrant crisis with the Turkish President which comes ahead of a highly anticipated summit of EU and Turkish leaders next week.

European Council President Tusk ended a six-nation tour of migration crisis countries in Turkey, where 850,000 migrants and refugees left last year for Greek islands.

Idomeni

About a third of migrants trapped in Greece are at the village of Idomeni, on the border with Macedonia.

The conditions at the a sprawling camp there are becoming increasingly difficult with families in need of everything from food and water to decent sanitation facilities.

Christopher Hein is Director of the Italian Council for Refugees. Speaking to Lydia O’Kane about the migrant situation in Europe, he said, ... “clearly there is no real common and comprehensive European response to what is happening.”

He also said, “there is an apparent need an objective need to come to an answer, from the whole of the European Union together with international organisations, an answer which is based on the principle of solidarity as it is enshrined in the Lisbon Treaty…”

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Equal distribution

Mr Hein added, that what was also important was the need for a more equal distribution of refugees and asylum seekers, because he said, there are many countries (in the EU) “that have a very low number of refugees and asylum seekers and this cannot be.”