Meanwhile the relocation scheme which would supposedly reduce the burden of Greece and Italy is barely into place. According to the plan, refugees would be relocated proportionally to other member states.
 
In its latest progress report on the EU’s emergency relocation and resettlement schemes, the Commission noted on Wednesday that the number of relocations has increased to 2,280, with the rate having almost doubled since mid-May. Last month just 780 migrants were relocated to other EU member states from Greece and Italy, way below the monthly target of 6.000.
 
 In Greece alone, more than 57.000 refugees and migrants have been stranded since the refugee crisis climaxed in 2015.
 
The Commission notes that “despite these positive signs, progress is still too slow”. “Action must be accelerated to avoid migrants returning to irregular routes,” the report said.
 
“As numbers of arrivals in Greece have gone down, the absolute onus now lies on significantly increasing and speeding up relocations” said European Commissioner for Migration Dimitris Avramopoulos.
 
According to the report, the main reasons for the significant delays in relocations are the absence of adequate infrastructure, particularly in Greece where registering/hosting needs are huge at the moment and secondly, the reluctance expressed by other member states to receive refugees.
 
The Commission also prodded Greece to enforce the Dublin Regulation, according to which migrants must lodge asylum applications in the first EU country they enter. It said Greece is making progress in enforcing the law but still has work to do.