Tsipras, Putin discuss refugee crisis in phonecall

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras spoke by phone on Friday about strengthening bilateral ties and the growing migrant crisis, the premier's office said.

Putin called to congratulate Tsipras, who won a clear election victory on Sunday, giving him a fresh mandate to push trough a controversial bailout deal with international creditors that demands tough reforms in return for the rescue funds.

During the conversation, they spoke about "strengthening bilateral ties" as well as regional developments, "particularly the issue of the refugee flows," Tsipras' office said.

Since the start of the year, some 330,000 people, most of them Syrians fleeing civil war, have arrived on Greek shores, with another 3,000 still arriving every day, UN figures show.

During his first term in office, Tsipras visited Russia twice in the space of a few months, and in spite of the conflict in Ukraine, he sought to maintain Athens' traditional ties with Moscow, in a move which raised concern in Europe.

On a visit to Moscow in June, Tsipras signed a preliminary agreement for Russia to build a two-billion-euro ($2.2 billion) gas pipeline through Greece, extending the TurkStream project, which is intended to supply Russian gas to Turkey.

The call came a day after Tsipras received a congratulatory phonecall from US President Barack Obama, during which the two leaders discussed Europe's migration crisis and Greece's debt-ridden economy.

Source: AFP