Switzerland refuses to take more asylum seekers from Italy, Greece

Switzerland has rejected a refugee relocation program proposed by the European Union to relieve the burden on frontier countries like Italy and Greece, local media reported on Sunday.

The Sonntags Blick paper reported that a spokesperson from the Swiss State Secretariat for Migration (SEM) has confirmed that the country will not renew its commitment to accept asylum seekers from southern European countries.

According to the report, the EU launched a second relocation program last autumn and in a letter from EU, Switzerland was asked to accommodate as many people as possible.

Switzerland had participated in the first such relocation program in 2015, pledging to take in 1,500 asylum seekers from Italy and Greece.

So far, local media said that 902 asylum seekers from Italy and 579 from Greece have been admitted by Switzerland under the first relocation program....