Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Hungary : Belgium recognises that countries lying at external borders of EU contribute to stopping flow of migration

Belgium recognises that the closure of the Western Balkans migration route has actually contributed to reducing the flow of immigration reaching Europe, and that the countries lying at the external borders of the European Union, including Hungary, play an important role in stopping the wave of migration, Kristóf Altusz, Deputy State Secretary responsible for European and US relations at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade informed the Hungarian news agency MTI regarding his talks in Brussels.

As regards the resolution of the migration crisis, the positions of Belgium and Hungary are similar inasmuch as both countries would provide greater assistance for the countries of origin concerned. The purpose of this is to stop more people from setting out for Europe, Mr Altusz said.

The Deputy State Secretary agreed with Anick Van Calster, Director General for Bilateral Affairs at the Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, that greater attention should be paid to and more emphasis should be laid on the protection of the EU's external borders.

Mr Altusz said that the two countries have different views regarding the establishment of EU-operated asylum-seeker registration centres, so-called hotspots, outside the territory of the EU, and there was also a difference in opinions concerning the concept of solidarity in the context of the taking in of refugees.

The countries lying at the external borders of the European Union take their fair share of solidarity among the Member States by 'stopping immigration, rather than carrying the problem from one border to another. They only allow entry into the territory of the EU in a controlled manner', he said.

Mr Altusz told MTI: as regards the security of Europe and the stability of the region, he agreed with his Belgian counterpart that Russia violated international law through the annexation of the Eastern Ukraine region.

He remarked that it is the duty of the EU to ensure that Ukraine may function as an independent State. In order to achieve this, Hungary provides assistance for its eastern neighbour, for instance, by financing the operation of schools and other educational institutions, supporting church institutions, providing medical treatment for injured soldiers in Hungary, and promoting the operation of small and medium-sized businesses in Ukraine.

Hungary additionally guarantees that Ukraine may purchase gas on a market basis via its territory, thereby alleviating the dependence on Russia of the country suffering from the ongoing war, the Deputy State Secretary highlighted.

(MTI)