Greece’s Denial-and-Detain Playbook

Greece deters irregular migration by combining hard enforcement—pushbacks, automatic detention, deportation stipends plus prison penalties, and criminalization of NGO assistance—with a simple communications tactic: blanket denial of violations to EU critics. This mix has reduced flows and muted domestic backlash without Hungary‑style pariah status. It presents a replicable model for states prioritizing border control over procedural compliance. — It spotlights an effective but norm‑bending template that other European governments or the UK could emulate, forcing a debate over sovereignty versus rule‑of‑law constraints at the border.