Bulgaria might be affected to a bigger extent by the migrant crisis after the Western Balkans route is closed, EU border agency Frontex's Executive Director Fabrice Leggeri has said.

His comments follow a move by the Western Balkans to seal their borders to thousands of migrants stranded in Northern Greece following an agreement between EU leaders and Turkey on measures to deal with the migrant influx.

Leggeri has explained, commenting for Le Monde newspaper, that the flow could be divided into two "parts", one through Albania and then taking the Adriatic route further to Europe, and another via Bulgaria.

However, he has noted that sailing conditions across the Black Sea were "complicated" if compared to those in the Aegean between Turkey and Greece.

The latter route has been used by thousands of migrants trying to cross into Europe. Reports of beatings and pushbacks on the Bulgaria-Turkey border, along with stricter border control and a barbed-wire fence are said to have discouraged many migrants from entering Bulgaria to continue westwards.

Earlier it was reported that both Albania and Bulgaria were stepping up border security measures and preparing for new pressure on their frontiers. 

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