ATHENS: Greek authorities said Friday they safely evacuated dozens of migrants from a sailboat reported in trouble off the southern coast of Greece, amid a rise in migration to the Mediterranean country.
The coast guard said all the people on board, estimated at up to 70, were transferred to a patrol boat in international waters southwest of the Peloponnese region, and were being taken to the port of Katakolo.
The evacuation followed a large search and rescue operation involving three coast guard patrol and rescue boats, a navy ship, aircraft and four merchant vessels, a coast guard statement said.
It was launched after Greek maritime authorities received an alarm message early Friday reporting a boat in danger some 70 kilometers (40 miles) southwest of the port of Pylos in the Peloponnese.
The coast guard said the migrants’ boat was not letting in water or otherwise in danger, as had been initially reported.
The incident occurred near the site of a maritime tragedy in mid-June that left hundreds of migrants dead or missing after a fishing trawler sank in international waters while traveling from Libya to Italy. Greece was heavily criticized for failing to safely evacuate the ship before it sank.
It was unclear where the yacht had sailed from.
International waters off southwestern Greece are on a route used by smugglers in recent years to carry migrants in overloaded sailboats from Turkiye to Italy. Longer and more dangerous than the short crossing to Greece’s eastern Aegean Sea islands, it’s used in an attempt to bypass Greek coast guard patrols in the Aegean.
Also Friday, the coast guard rescued 22 migrants from a stranded sailboat off the eastern Aegean island of Rhodes.
Greece has seen a rise in migrant arrivals from Turkiye, mostly by sea, in recent weeks amid more clement summer sailing conditions.
Greece safely evacuates dozens of migrants from a sailboat off the southern coast
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Greece safely evacuates dozens of migrants from a sailboat off the southern coast
- People on board were transferred to a patrol boat in international waters southwest of the Peloponnese region
Trump discussing how to acquire Greenland; US military always an option, White House says
- Greenland has repeatedly said it does not want to be part of the United States
- Strong statements in support of Greenland from NATO leaders have not deterred Trump
WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump and his team are discussing options for acquiring Greenland and the use of the US military in furtherance of the goal is “always an option,” the White House said on Tuesday.
Trump’s ambition of acquiring Greenland as a strategic US hub in the Arctic, where there is growing interest from Russia and China, has been revived in recent days in the wake of the US arrest of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. Greenland has repeatedly said it does not want to be part of the United States.
The White House said in a statement in response to queries from Reuters that Trump sees acquiring Greenland as a US national security priority necessary to “deter our adversaries in the Arctic region.”
“The president and his team are discussing a range of options to pursue this important foreign policy goal, and of course, utilizing the US military is always an option at the commander-in-chief’s disposal,” the White House said.
A senior US official said discussions about ways to acquire Greenland are active in the Oval Office and that advisers are discussing a variety of options.
Strong statements in support of Greenland from NATO leaders have not deterred Trump, the official said.
“It’s not going away,” the official said about the president’s drive to acquire Greenland during his remaining three years in office.
The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said options include the outright US purchase of Greenland or forming a Compact of Free Association with the territory. A COFA agreement would stop short of Trump’s ambition to make the island of 57,000 people a part of the US.
A potential purchase price was not provided.
“Diplomacy is always the president’s first option with anything, and dealmaking. He loves deals. So if a good deal can be struck to acquire Greenland, that would definitely be his first instinct,” the official said.
Administration officials argue the island is crucial to the US due to its deposits of minerals with important high-tech and military applications. These resources remain untapped due to labor shortages, scarce infrastructure and other challenges.
Leaders from major European powers and Canada rallied behind Greenland on Tuesday, saying the Arctic island belongs to its people.
