Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis and his visiting Spanish counterpart Jose Luis Zapatero yesterday called for the creation of a common European Union coast guard to curb illegal immigration but stressed that the EU should not become a “fortress” against would-be migrants.

“Greece and Spain suffer similar problems and the drama of illegal immigration in particular,” Zapatero told a joint press conference in Athens, stressing that the two countries were “in agreement on migration and development policy... and on repatriation.”

Both men agreed that a very effective way to minimize immigration flows is to increase aid going to migrants’ countries of origin in order to boost development.

“The political response (to the immigration problem) is to give aid to the countries of origin, genuinely support their development and shape a comprehensive and effective immigration policy,” Karamanlis said.

One of the main pillars of this policy would be a more effective approach to policing Europe’s sea borders, the two leaders agreed. Karamanlis noted that Greece and Spain are among the few EU member states bearing the brunt of immigration flows due to their geographical position on the EU’s external borders. A single country’s coast guard services are not adequately equipped to tackle what is essentially a “European problem,” Karamanlis said.

The two leaders also discussed the creation of a Mediterranean Union, bringing together EU states and countries washed by the Mediterranean. Other issues on the agenda included climate change and the need to switch to renewable forms of energy. Karamanlis heralded the “cooperation in this crucial sector” between Greece and Spain, which has made significant progress.