ANNUAL POLICY REPORT 2012 funding, the conditions in detention centers and the operation 'Xenios Zeus'129, who also addressed relevant recommendations to Greek government: “I regret the bureaucratic hurdles in the Greek government relating to the disbursement of EU funds, including the European Refugee Fund, which provides funding to NGOs who, inter alia, operate shelters for asylum seekers. ...I also deeply regret the Greek government’s new policy of systematically detaining everyone they detect irregularly entering the Greek territory, including unaccompanied children and families. I also regret the “sweep operations” in the context of operation “Xenios Zeus”, which have led to widespread detention of migrants in different parts of the country, many of whom have lived and worked in Greece for years...I am concerned about the inadequate detention conditions, as well as the insufficient procedural safeguards in the detention facilities for migrants...There is a strong need for regular, unannounced visits of all places of migrant detention in Greece....I am concerned however by the lack of appropriate staffing and budget yet dedicated to these two services [asylum and first reception]” On 25-26.10.2012 the recent outcomes of the implementation of the Greek Action Plan on Migration and Asylum were discussed in the Council of Ministers for Justice and Home Affairs.130. Commission's document131 to the Council under the title “Greece's National Action Plan on Asylum Reform and Migration Management”, reported that despite several positive developments, a number of deficiencies remained among which: a) reception conditions in the detention centres for migrants, are substandard, b) the wide use of detention of migrants may also deter requests to access protection c) the responsible authorities have not yet identified structures that could be used for accommodation purposes nor have they explored possibilities for EU funding. In the same document the list of specific deliverables agreed with the Minister of Public Order and Citizen Protection was mentioned, including improvement of the situation in the Evros region and the islands, clear progress of the asylum procedure, concrete actions to ensure sustainability of border controls, and better absorption of financial assistance, as well as implications from the Syrian crisis (plan for managing the humanitarian crisis and a potential flow of refugees). As regards the latter, an interministerial meeting was held under the coordination of the Minister of National Defense, P. Panayiotopoulos, with the participation of the Minister of Public Order and Citizen Protection, N. Dendias, and the Minister for Maritime Affairs and Aegean, K. Mousouroulis, with the aim to adopt the draft plan IONI for managing the expected flow of Syrian refugees. The issue of combating illegal migration at sea borders, esp. since the containment of illegally entering migrants from the Evros borders, was also 129 http://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=12858&LangID=E 130 http://www.mopocp.gov.gr/index.php?option=ozo_content&lang=&perform=view&id=4394&Itemi d=555, http://www.consilium.europa.eu/uedocs/cms_data/docs/pressdata/en/jha/133241.pdf 131 Council Of the European Union, doc. 15358/12/LIMITE/ASSIM 131/COMIX 595/23 October 2012, http://www.statewatch.org/news/2012/oct/eu-com-greece-migration-15358-12.pdf 48