MORIA, Greece — By the middle of the week, it will be possible to install all the people that were resident in the Moria camp into the temporary reception and identification centre at the Lesvos Firing Range near Kara Tepe, Migration and Asylum Minister Notis Mitarachi said on Monday, talking to radio "Parapolitika FM".

He said that there were already 5,000 beds in the new facility and made it clear that residence in the new camp "is not optional, it is obligatory."

"When someone enters our country, they are obliged to respect its laws. No pressure that may be brought to bear can change this policy," he underlined.

The minister also made it clear that a permanent hosting facility will be created on Lesvos and stressed that the state has an obligation to protect both local populations on the islands but also the country as a whole, "by reducing migration flows."

Mitarachi said that the asylum service was operating normally and continuing to examine asylum applications, while also sending a message to "trouble-makers" that their actions will not be tolerated and that anyone who wants to leave the island can only do so by going through the proper channels, namely the asylum process.

The minister also announced that the asylum service will begin video-call interviews next Monday but only for those already installed in the new camp, while all previous appointments will be cancelled.