The EU yesterday unveiled a 700-million-euro emergency aid plan for Greece and other states hit by the migrant crisis, in what would be the first time humanitarian cash has been used within Europe instead of outside the bloc.

The United Nations has warned of a looming humanitarian crisis as thousands of refugees are stuck in wintry misery at the Greece-Macedonia border after a domino effect of Balkan border closures.

Greece is the main entry point for the 1.13 million migrants who have landed since the start of 2015 in the European Union, which has been divided and weakened by the biggest wave of refugees since World War II, reports AFP.

"No time can be lost in deploying all means possible to prevent humanitarian suffering within our own borders," EU Humanitarian Aid Commissioner Christos Stylianides said as he announced the aid plan.

The funds would be allocated over three years, with 300 million euros

($325 million) in 2016, and 200 million euros in each of the following years under the plan, which must be approved by member states and the European Parliament.

Meanwhile, the stench of burning plastic hung over the "Jungle" migrant

camp yesterday as dozens of riot police moved in for a third day to demolish the shantytown in northern France.

Police, who arrived in about 30 vehicles, set up lines to push back activists, charity workers and the press, but were clearly under orders to go easy on the refugees in the glare of the

world's media.

Macedonia yesterday allowed some 200 refugees to cross its border with Greece as 10,000 more were left waiting at the border under miserable conditions, Greek officials said.

It was the first group of Syrians and Iraqis permitted to continue their desperate journey to Europe since dawn on Monday, when another 300 were let through before the frontier was closed.

The senior Nato commander in Europe has said Russia and Syria are deliberately using migration as an aggressive strategy towards Europe. US Gen Philip Breedlove said they were "weaponising" migration to destabilise and undermine the continent, reports BBC.

He also suggested that criminals, extremists and fighters were hiding in the flow of migrants.

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) said nearly 129,500 migrants had arrived by sea so far in 2016, plus another 1,545 by land. It said 418 had drowned or were missing.