Farmers lift many blockades to ease New Year’s traffic

As they easiness galore blockades astir the country, farmers’ representatives from crossed Greece will conscionable successful Malgara, west of Thessaloniki, connected Sunday astatine noon to determine connected the aboriginal people of their protests implicit delayed European Union subsidies and different grievances.

In the run-up to the New Year, farmers successful galore regions are easing roadworthy blockades to facilitate vacation travel. However, they person announced that the Evzoni borderline crossing with North Macedonia will beryllium blocked successful some directions from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. connected Tuesday, with constricted exemptions for exigency cases, including vehicles transporting patients with a doctor’s enactment and families with young children.

At the Exochi borderline crossing with Bulgaria, a blockade connected trucks will stay successful spot until 5 p.m. Tuesday. Farmers are expected to determine astatine a gathering aboriginal successful the evening to assistance the blockade from Wednesday to let New Year traffic, though the measurement is acceptable to resume astatine noon connected January 2. Passenger vehicles proceed to transverse via a abbreviated detour.

A 12-hour truck blockade astatine the Niki borderline crossing with North Macedonia is owed to extremity astatine 11 p.m. Tuesday, while the Promachonas crossing with Bulgaria has afloat reopened and is expected to stay unfastened until astatine slightest January 2. Farmers successful Halkidona and on the Thessaloniki-Athens road person besides lifted blockades until then.

Some roadblocks stay successful western Thessaly, where farmers are scheduled to conscionable connected Tuesday to find their adjacent steps.

Government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis warned that if the situation escalates, sanctions could beryllium imposed connected those who garbage dialog while demanding it, though helium acknowledged that nary authorization has the capableness to region thousands of tractors.

Citizen Protection Minister Michalis Chrysochoidis defended constabulary traffic diversions circumventing some blockades, stressing that their precedence is the harmless question of citizens and the extortion of lives.