repeated the vivid opposition of the Regional Authority against the construction of the new structures in Lesvos and Chios,211 an opposition that was restated during 2025. 212 In 19 August 2022, a decision of the Greek Council of State paved the way for the continued construction of a new EU-funded CCAC in a 71,250 km2 forest in Vastria, on Lesvos island. However, an application for suspension by the North Aegean Region and by local communities (Komi and N. Kydonia), regarding the access road to the structure of Vastria was accepted by the Commission of Suspensions of the Greek Council of State in temporary decision 199/2022-19/12/2022. This prohibited any construction until the final judgment of the court on the application for its annulment, as it was considered that the construction of the road would lead to irreversible destruction of the forest and impact the rare birdlife of the protected area.213 In August 2023, following an application submitted by the North Aegean Region, the Greek Council of State, in 1335/2023 decision,214 annulled the authorisation approving the CCAC’s construction project in Lesvos, due to lack of an environmental study. In the same judgement, the Council of State annulled the authorisation approving the intervention to the forest area for the construction of the road giving access to the CCAC.215 Subsequently, the then-Minister of MoMA declared that the Ministry has already taken all the necessary steps for the proper environmental classification and approval of the construction of the structure and its accompanying works and so, according to him, its construction was estimated to be finalised by spring 2024.216 However, The North Aegean Region appealed to the Council of State against the validity of the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) submitted by the State in September 2023. During the Council’s scheduled session on 16 October 2024, the State decided to withdraw the EIA with the reservation of replacing it with another.217 According to information published by the local authorities, the MoMA is in the process of signing a joint ministerial decision by the competent ministers, which repeals the annulled by the Council of State joint decision [No. 364995/25-07-2023 (D' 701/2023)] and grants a new permit for the construction of the site in Vastria. 218 In Chios, no construction work took place in 2024 either, as the examination of the application submitted by the State to exercise a right to access the area of the construction, had been pending before the Chios Court of the First Instance.219 On 21 October 2024, the Court ruled that the rightful owner of the disputed land is the Municipality of Chios, not the Greek State, thereby reaffirming the local community's longrunning opposition against the construction of the closed structure at the Tholos site.220 On Samos and Leros, the CCAC have been moved to different areas compared to where the previous RICs were located, namely in Zervou (Samos) and Lepida (Leros). Similarly, the new facilities under construction on Lesvos and Chios are located in different areas, namely in Plati – Vastria (Lesvos) and in 211 212 213 214 215 216 217 218 219 220 TaNeA, ΞΕΚΟΨΕ Ο ΜΟΥΤΖΟΥΡΗΣ ΚΑΘΕ ΒΛΕΨΗ ΓΙΑ ΤΗ ΒΑΣΤΡΙΑ: «Θα φτάσουμε στα όρια», 31 October 2024. Region of Northern Aegean, “Dinner with Ambassadors”, 4 April 2025, available in Greek at: https://tinyurl.com/2pdauyp3 and politikalesvos, “Warning statement from Regional Governor Kostas Moutzouris: 'Southern Crete is experiencing today what we lived through in 2015-2020 – No to new facilities'”, 9 July 2025, available in Greek at: https://tinyurl.com/y7bkx523. Commission of suspensions, Council of State, 19-12-2022, decision 199/2022, available in Greek at: https://bit.ly/3Vdnva1. Summary of Greek Council of State’s the decision n.1335/2023 available in Greek at: https://tinyurl.com/5n88drdz. ΤaΝea, Council of State: Invalid licensing of a structure in Plati – Vastria, Lesvos, 9 August 2023, available in Greek at: https://tinyurl.com/mpvj7xcv. LesvosNews.Net, Τι θα γίνει τελικά με την Βάστρια; Ι απαντά ο Υπουργός, 19 October 2023, available in greek at: https://tinyurl.com/sn4snjn5. RSA, Refugee facilities on the Aegean islands, Lesvos, 10 December 2024, available at: https://tinyurl.com/3rjz3ku2. POLITIKA, ΠΕΡ. ΒΟΡΕΙΟΥ ΑΙΓΑΙΟΥ για Βάστρια: «Η Διοίκηση με νέα ΚΥΑ περιφρονεί τις αποφάσεις του ΣΤΕ, 23 October 2024, available here. Ert News, Chios: Discontinuation of the hearing for the New Structure in Τholos, 20 September 2023, available in Greek at: https://tinyurl.com/3x2w8sxy. Ert News, Χίος: Δημοτική η έκταση στο Θόλο με απόφαση δικαστηρίου, 25 October 2024 available at: https://tinyurl.com/bdne3dc2. 60