Subscribe to our social channels to get the latest news about Hungary!
Hungarian interior minister wants stricter border control, offers help
Change language:
Interior Minister Sándor Pintér highlighted the importance of the protection of the external borders of the European Union and of in-depth controls within the bloc, at a press conference held after a meeting of the Justice and Home Affairs Council (JHA) in Brussels on Thursday.
At a press conference held on Thursday evening together with Magnus Brunner, the commissioner for internal affairs and migration, Pintér said that it was of “historic” importance that the Schengen integration process of Bulgaria and Romania had been completed, “after negotiations spanning almost a decade”.
Their integration into the Schengen Area was the most important achievement of the Hungarian EU presidency, he said.
After the decision, the meeting reviewed the inter-operability of IT systems with the Schengen Area’s associated members, especially in view of a planned border registration system, Pintér said.
Although the full-scale introduction of the automatic IT system for registering the border crossings of third country citizens is being delayed, the JHA reiterated its commitment to set up a schedule to minimise the damage caused, he said. “The goal is to finish [work on] interoperability by 2027.”
The council also pledged to reinforce Greece’s borders with Türkiye and Bulgaria, as well as the stretch between Bulgaria and Türkiye. The latter will receive a contingent of over 100 Hungarian, Romanian and Austrian troops, he added.
Besides border protection, controls will be strengthened within the EU too. Hungary will maintain “secondary border control” on its Romanian border until June 30, just as Austria does on its Hungarian border, he added.