Hungary’s FM: Europe’s borders to the south, southeast unprotected

The situation is unchanged from 2015 in that the European Union is unprotected to the south and its borders are wide open, Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said on Friday in Athens.

According to the Hungarian Foreign Minister, the arrival of a new wave of migration into Europe from a southern or south-eastern direction is exclusively dependent on continued compliance to the migration agreement between the EU and Turkey.

“This is one of the reasons why it is extremely important to keep Hungary’s southern border closed.

Because if another wave of illegal immigration sets out in a south-eastern direction via the Western Balkans, in view of the lack of any other obstacle, it will immediately appear at Hungary’s southern border”, Mr. Szijjártó said.

The Minister, who is attending a meeting of foreign ministers from the Visegrád Group (V4) and the Balkan countries in the Greek capital, stressed: “With relation to the future of Europe, it is unavoidable for the migration crisis to be the most important issue on the agenda”.

“In Greece, the situation is becoming more dramatic day-by-day. The number of illegal immigrants arriving in Thessaloniki increased by 500% in April alone”

Mr. Szijjártó explained, adding: “According to the locals the situation is beginning to resemble that of 2015, on top of which Greece’s Constitutional Court has stated that people arriving on the island can travel on to the mainland”. “And where will they travel on to from there?”, the Minister asked.