Cyprus and Greece are likely to face increased migration activity from Turkey in the period 2023-2024, although a drop was noted in the first months of the year, according to Frontex.
Arrivals to Cyprus and Greece on the eastern Mediterranean route from Turkey fell by 29 per cent in the period of January-July this year, compared to 2022 the European border agency said in its analysis, published on Monday.
However, developments on the ground in a number of countries of origin and transit, driven by global macroeconomic factors, including persistent inflation and recession, will negatively impact the socioeconomic conditions of large populations and herald an increase in migration flows to Europe in 2023-2024, Frontex predicted.
Last month, the EU border agency reported that the central Mediterranean route, from north Africa to Italy, remained the most active route in 2023.
In the first seven months of the year, from January-July, over 89,000 detections by national authorities were made- a rise of 115 per cent over the same period in 2022.
This was the highest total on this route for the period since 2017.