Real and substantial border protection is needed, Hungary is protecting Europe from enormous migratory pressure by defending the external borders of the EU, said Bence Rétvári, Parliamentary State Secretary of the Ministry of Interior, in Brussels on Thursday, following the meeting of the EU Home Affairs Council.
Speaking to Hungarian journalists, the politician said that today, European migration policy is dominated by smugglers.
He stressed that it is not the EU but the smugglers who decide who becomes a European resident and who does not. Those who are smuggled across borders into the territory of the European Union by traffickers become European residents. The European Union cannot stop smugglers because it does not protect its external borders," he said.
"Hungary's consistent position has not changed: let us stop illegal migration at the external borders and let the EU decide who can be European resident and who cannot," Bence Rétvári said.
Hungary wants the European Union to take the efforts of border protection into account and to contribute to the €1.6 billion, some HUF 650 billion, spent so far on ensuring common security, he said.
He said that above all, the causes of migration must be addressed, not just the consequences. It is necessary to prevent those who do not have the right to stay in the EU from entering in its territory. This is also necessary because the EU has a weak capacity to send back those who do not have the right to stay in the EU," he said.
Concerning the Council's discussion on the war in Ukraine and the related situation in Moldova, Bence Rétvári stressed that for Hungary, peace is the most important. All efforts must be made to prevent the war from escalating and any other country from entering into conflict. It is important to have a ceasefire and then peace in Ukraine as soon as possible, he added.
He also reported that the second generation Schengen Information System (SIS II) became operational two days ago. The use of the system is important not only for border protection but also for the fight against cross-border international crime, as the sharing of biometric identifiers between Member States will make it easier to identify offenders who are registered as unknown offenders in a country, the Parliamentary State Secretary of the Interior Ministry added.
Source: MTI - Hungarian News Agency
