A “Surrogate State” for Refugees in Greece

The rapid increase in the number of refugees arriving to Greece in 2015 and the subsequent moves by the European Union Member States to limit their secondary movement triggered what has been described as the “most expensive humanitarian response in history.” The European Commission, believing that Greece did not have the capacity to respond to the situation, directly funded international organisations, primarily the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), and international non-governmental organisations to do so. The “care and maintenance model” at the core of UNHCR’s response to protracted refugee situations has been described as a “surrogate state,” complete with the territory, services, and citizens. This article aimed to examine whether this refugee response in Greece followed the “surrogate state” model which characterised interventions in other geographies, by studying UNHCR’s service provision, governance functions, perception of legitimacy, territorial presence and influence. This study shows that this refugee response was characterised by a degree of surrogacy that resembles the “surrogate states” observed in other refugee responses. The Greek government was marginalised during the response and abdicated a significant degree of responsibility to UNHCR. This negatively affected the quality of the response itself and the long-term welfare and prospects of refugees.