Slovakia Reimposes Checks At Borders With Hungary
- 5 Oct 2023 7:02 AM
- Hungary Around the Clock
Slovakia will temporarily reintroduce controls at the Hungarian border from Thursday, which will remain in force until at least October 14, the Bratislava government decided at its meeting on Wednesday.
The reintroduction of border control comes one day after the Czech Republic and Poland introduced similar measures at the Slovak border on Wednesday, followed by Austria.
The Slovak government said the restriction was necessary to curb illegal migration.
Illegal migrants, who use Slovakia mainly as a transit country, are mostly foreigners who cannot be deported due to administrative constraints and whose detention serve no purpose, and who will remain in the country if they cannot transit, the Slovak Interior Ministry said.
The number of illegal migrants arriving in Slovakia via the Western Balkan route started to increase noticeably in August last year.
Since the beginning of this year nearly 40,000 illegal migrants have entered Slovakia, 11 times more than in the same period of last year, the ministry added.
Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó responded to the Slovak move in a statement, which can be summed up in one word: “Brussels”, HVG writes.
"Brussels is entirely to blame for the intensification of migration pressure in Central Europe, because keeping mandatory resettlement quotas on the agenda attracts illegal immigrants like a magnet and supports the business model of people smugglers," he declared.
XpatLoop Media Partner
LATEST NEWS IN getting around