President: Limits of accepting migrants should be discussed openly

EU member states’ capacity to accept migrants, as well as the distribution of tasks among developed countries, should be a subject of open debate, Hungarian President János Áder said on Friday, at a meeting of the Arraiolos group in Athens.

The Arraiolos group, a forum for European presidents without executive power, is holding its 15th meeting with presidents of Bulgaria, Croatia, Estonia, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Malta, Poland, Portugal and Slovenia attending.

In his speech, Áder cited forecasts saying the population of Africa’s Sahel region, “where good quality water is already scarce”, will double by 2050. Europe will not be able to accept another 40 to 100 million migrants, Áder warned.

He also called on other developed states to pull their weight in tackling the migration crisis.

Aiding vulnerable communities to make a living in their homelands, improving the working environment and farming aids cannot be shouldered by the European Union alone, he said.