Fidesz politician: ‘It should be up to us whom to allow in’

“It should be up to us whom to allow into Europe, and this principle should inform European migration policy,” János Bóka, Hungary’s EU affairs minister told Portuguese daily Diario de Noticias.

In the interview published on Thursday, the minister said the EU’s external borders should be reinforced. “There’s no migration policy if you can’t decide who should and shouldn’t be let in,” he said.

Asked about Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s meeting with President Vladimir Putin in China, Bóka said diplomacy required “talking to partners, rivals, or even enemies”.

“It would be bad diplomacy to restrict dialogue only to those we see eye to eye with.”

Regarding the government’s position on the war in Ukraine, he said Hungary “firmly holds the line that Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity must be respected. We also think that military conflict must be stopped by way of a ceasefire.”

Concerning the war between Israel and Hamas, Bóka said: “We stand by Israel. These are terrorist attacks committed by a terrorist organisation … Israel has the right to defend itself.”

Concerning Hungary’s frozen EU funds, Bóka said European procedures against Hungary were unfounded because “those concerns about the rule of law” were inapplicable.

He said Hungary was committed to European unity “at a time when the geopolitical situation is extremely fragile, and the EU should reflect unity and strength to save our values and promote our interests.”

Source: MTI