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Within a 17-page report to be released today, the Commission will demand Greece ensures all asylum seekers are treated with “respect” in accordance with European law as they force Greece to start taking back migrants from March next year. For the last six years, Greece has been excused from the European Union’s “Dublin Agreement” created in 1990, forcing member countries who are the first point of entry for migrants seeking asylum to process their application. The European Court of Justice and the European Court of Human Rights allowed the treaty to be waived in 2011 in Greece as the country’s asylum facilities were in an unacceptable condition as Greek authorities struggled to cope with the massive influx.

GETTY The European Commission will force Greece to accept migrant applications

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Commissioners are imposing the timeline as part of a bid to lift border controls in many EU countries which were imposed as members reacted to the migrant crisis which has caused the suspension of the Schengen zone which allows visa-free travel across countries. Countries including Austria, Hungary, Germany and Denmark all imposed border controls to stop refugees entering and are only likely to lift them if they can send asylum seekers back to the European Union country they arrived in. Greece will not be forced to take in “vulnerable applicants” and “unaccompanied minors”.

Many of the reception centres are not only overcrowded, but have substandard material conditions in terms of sanitation and hygiene An EU official

The new EU report obtained by Politico said: “It is recommended that the transfer of asylum applicants to Greece should be resumed.” Although Greek conditions have not substantially improved since 2011, European officials have said migrant transfers between EU countries and Turkey have dramatically slowed down, so Athens must help.

Getty Greece's asylum facilities were so bad they were exempt from the Dublin Regulation

GETTY Alexis Tsipras, at an EU commission meeting

An official for the European Commission said: “In terms of quality many of the reception facilities in Greece still fall short of the requirements. “Many of the reception centres are not only overcrowded, but have substandard material conditions in terms of sanitation and hygiene. “Moreover, overall coordination of the organisation of reception in Greece appears to be deficient.”

GETTY Migrants arriving at the Greek Island, Kos

Commission officials added there will be plans for other EU countries to accept at least 2,000 migrants from Greece before the end of the year, in order to accelerate the relocation procedure. Earlier this year, the EU promised to send £2.56billion to Turkey and visa-free EU travel for Turkish people in return for taking back a large number of Syrian migrants who attempted to seek asylum in Greece. However, one EU official said only 748 migrants have been returned from Greece to Turkey since the agreement started in March. And only a two-thirds of the funding has been designated to Turkey, with under a third handed to Turkey much to the Government's anger.

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