Turkey reportedly agrees to fence along Greek border to fight human smuggling

Turkey has agreed to the construction of a 10-kilometer wire fence along the Maritsa River on its border with Greece to fight human smuggling, reported Greek daily Ta Nea yesterday. After previously refusing to build such a fence, officials from the Foreign Ministry, Interior Ministry and Directorate General of Security last week held meetings with their Greek counterparts and approved the project, said the paper. In recent months human traffickers have shifted their efforts to the Maritsa border, as smuggling in the Aegean region has become more difficult due to the European Union's Frontex border security project. The fence will reportedly stretch from Kastanies to Nea Vissa and will include reinforced wire blocks.