Commission wants 'full application' of rules returning migrants to Greece from March

As Greek authorities struggle to host more than 60,000 migrants stranded in the country, the European Commission on Wednesday proposed the prolongation of border controls in the passport-free Schengen area for another three months as the bloc is still working on steps to deal with the migrant crisis.

Austria, Germany, Denmark, Sweden and non-EU country Norway introduced the checks in 2015 as an unprecedented wave of refugees streamed into Europe; the checks were extended last November and are due to expire in mid-February.

"Significant progress has been made to lift internal border controls, but we need to solidify it further," European Commission Vice President Frans Timmermans said. "This is why we recommend allowing member-states concerned to maintain temporary border controls for a further three months."

Migration Commissioner Dimitris Avramopoulos insisted...