Orban: Hungary's fence will protect Europe's borders
| Publisher | Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty |
| Publication Date | 19 June 2015 |
| Cite as | Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Orban: Hungary's fence will protect Europe's borders, 19 June 2015, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/55b5f3f025.html [accessed 18 May 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
June 19, 2015
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban (file photo)
Hungary's prime minister says his government's plan to build a 4-meter-high fence on the border with Serbia to stop the flow of migrants will also protect Europe "from every illegal entry."
Viktor Orban said on June 19 that "if a question is complicated, choose the easiest solution," so in the case of the migrants, "the state will defend its external borders."
Hungary has received more than 53,000 asylum requests this year, compared with fewer than 43,000 in 2014 and 2,150 in 2012.
Orban, who met with other Central European leaders and French President Francois Hollande in Slovakia's capital, Bratislava, said Hungary considered it a state obligation to defend its borders and would not seek help for the task.
Meanwhile, Hollande said he thought commitments by individual EU member states offered a better way of resettling African and Middle Eastern migrants rather than the imposition of national quotas by Brussels.
Hollande's position was seconded by Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, who said Slovakia, Hungary, the Czech Republic, and Poland are jointly opposed to quotas on individual EU member states for the resettling of illegal migrants from Africa and the Middle East.
Based on reporting by Reuters and AP
Link to original story on RFE/RL website
