Frontex: Unmanned Aircraft Deployed in Support of Border Control in Greece
In a statement issued on July 11, Frontex also emphasized that a part of the launching event of the activity were Greek officials, including Secretary-General for Insular and Aegean Policies Emmanuel Koutoulakis and Vice-Admiral of the Hellenic Coast Guard Georgios Alexandrakis, AtoZSerwisPlus.com reports.
According to Frontex, the aircraft will be part of Poseidon, one of the agency’s largest operations at the EU’s external borders. In addition, there are currently 429 Frontex officers and staff in Greece, along with 14 boats, two aircraft and 40 vehicles, including patrol cars, transport vehicles and thermal imaging, helping the Greek authorities to manage the borders.
“It will strengthen the operational capabilities of the Hellenic Coast Guard in border surveillance. The aircraft carries surveillance equipment, including thermal cameras and radars,” the statement reads.
In this regard, Frontex Executive Director ad interim Aija Kalnaja pointed out that the aircraft can fly both day and night, adding that it has the capacity to transmit live video and other information directly to the Frontex Headquarters and its partners.
According to Kalnaja, this will make it possible to evaluate and react in real-time to different situations.
” Our main mission for the upcoming months is to support the Greek authorities with border management and pre-frontier surveillance, as well as to detect and prevent cross-border crime. It will support the efforts to save the lives of people who are very often victims of smugglers and traffickers in human beings. A similar aircraft deployed in Malta has saved thousands of lives at sea,” she also added.
Over 17,900 illegal border crossings were discovered on the Eastern Mediterranean road in the first six months of this year, which means 125 per cent more than in the same period of 2021.
Previously, Frontex has revealed that around 23,500 irregular border crossings were registered in May, representing 27 per cent of all detections registered at the EU’s external borders since the beginning of the year.
In addition, 86,420 illegal border crossings were recorded at the EU’s borders between January and May, an increase of 82 per cent compared to the previous year.
The missions undertaken by Frontex serve and contribute to the protection of the security of all Europeans by helping national authorities to fight cross-border crime and effectively deal with hybrid threats coming from outside the EU.
