Abstract

The socioeconomic and political situation in Greece offers a significant context for addressing migration and refugee flows along with asylum and migration policies. The «migration/refugee crisis» (2015) was added to an already deepening economic crisis. In Greece, public opinion has addressed migration and asylum as a «problem» which needs to be «resolved», while the management of migration and asylum has been affected by the Eu securitization agenda. The paper seeks to identify and discuss the changing opportunities and challenges presented to and facing the newly arriving populations of migrants and refugees in Greece in the context of economic development. This shifts the discussion away from «human security» approach that aligns with right-wing populism. The paper’s primary focus is on exploring the previous movements of the newly arriving populations, reflecting on the challenges they face upon arrival in Greece, and analysing their integration prospects in the local receiving societies. The paper is structured into three main sections: the first section outlines the main developments in relation to asylum and migration in Greece in the period from the start of the economic recession to the present. The second section presents the empirical findings collected in the period 2017-2019 and centres on the perceptions and narratives of refugees, as well as stakeholders and policymakers who have been involved in the implementation of asylum and migration policy. The concluding section addresses the main issues raised by the previous sections and outlines the social and spatial justice claims raised at different spatial levels.