Greece wildfires: EU Commissioner Styalinides in Athens, “day of grief, but together we are determined to combat these fires”

Cypriot Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Management Christos Stylianides has flown to Athens yesterday to “coordinate the EU assistance being provided to Greece through the EU Civil Protection Mechanism”, a statement from the EU Commission reads. Indeed, four planes have been dispatched to Greece from Italy and Romania, while ground forces from Cyprus have been working since yesterday to get the fires under control. Offers of assistance to Greece were also made by Spain, Bulgaria, Croatia, Portugal, Malta, Macedonia and Montenegro. Commissioner Stylianides will meet with Prime Minister Tsipras and with opposition leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis today, as well as visit the affected areas. “The EU will continue to do all it takes to help the Greek people and authorities in this heart-breaking situation”, Commissioner Styalinides said. “It is a day of grief, but together, as Europeans, we are determined to decisively combat these fires”. “The priority must continue to be to help those affected for as long as it takes”. The EU’s Copernicus Satellite system providing high-precision mapping has been activated. The protection mechanism continues to help fight fires also in Sweden, with seven planes, over 300 firefighters and 60 vehicles, and in Latvia, with the Copernicus satellite. Under the Mechanism, the Commission co-finances the transport costs of assistance and links together all civil protection authorities in Europe.