"They can only obtain a residence permit in accordance with the procedure laid down by law."Continue reading
The architects of Germany’s disastrous “Willkommenskultur” seem to have finally rediscovered the importance of border controls and security checks, albeit somewhat selectively.
The European left-wing media and political landscape has been in overdrive condemning the Hungarian government’s plans to include Russian and Belarusian citizens, as well as some other nationalities in its long-running National Card program. News about spies and saboteurs entering the EU through Hungary have made front pages all across Europe.
Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó had called these news a “childish lie” and explained that the truth is that
Russian and Belarusian citizens can still only enter Hungary, and thus the Schengen area, with a visa, and can only obtain a residence permit in accordance with the procedure laid down by law, following a procedure carried out by the Directorate-General for Aliens”.
“Such procedures and the issuing of residence permits are a national competence under European rules”, the minister explained.
This did not stop dozens of politicians jumping on the media bandwagon, however, claiming that Russian and Belorussian citizens will now be flocking in to the EU through Hungary unchecked.
The most vocal group of politicians complaining about security threats infiltrating Europe through Hungary came from Germany, despite the fact that the country has operated an open borders policy for nearly a decade now, allowing in millions of unchecked, unvetted migrants who went on to commit numerous terrorist attacks, sexual violence and antisemitic incidents. As ZDF reported, the leader of the European Peoples’ Party (EPP), Manfred Weber (CSU), reportedly went on a rant claiming that
Putin’s spies and murderers have already caused a great deal of damage in the EU and Germany,” and called for “consequences.”
One of the most enthusiastic enforcers of Germany’s open borders and unlimited mass migration policies, German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD) also complained about “the risk of Russian espionage and sabotage” in connection with the Hungarian National Card system, calling for EU countries to increase protection instead of creating “potential gateways”. The new visa system has caused alarm even among the German Greens, who in the past ten years did not seem to discover any correlation between the millions of unchecked migrants flocking in to Germany and the skyrocketing crime figures. Yet now, Green Party MP Marcel Emmerich reportedly called for “thorough and strict visa checks” as Hungary’s planned easing of entry regulations was “causing great concern and could require action”.
What this action should be was spelled out by none other than Brandenburg’s Interior Minister, Michael Stübgen (CDU), completing the German political spectrum. According to ZDF, Stübgen has reportedly called for
controls at all EU borders with Hungary”,
and has readily provided the necessary legal opinion to confirm that this is indeed possible under EU law. He called for Hungary’s EU neighbors Austria, Croatia, Slovakia and Romania to consider their options in this matter.
Michael Stübgen zum Abschiebeminister 2023 gewählt!
Im Rahmen eines Gala-Abends der Jugendlichen ohne Grenzen (#JoG) im Berliner #GRIPSTheater Hansaplatz wurde heute der Brandenburger Innenminister Michael Stübgen (CDU) zum „Abschiebeminister 2023“ gewählt. pic.twitter.com/xNyEEWtyNZ
— GRIPS Theater (@GripsBerlin) June 16, 2023
It seems Hungarian commentators are not the only ones left with the impression that Mr. Stübgen is advocating misguided border protections policies and is engaging in political hypocrisy. A group of young German pro-migration activists have elected the CDU politician the “deportation minister of 2023” during a gala night in Berlin.
According to statistics, there are some 3.5 to 4 million ethnic Russians living in Germany, over quarter of a million of them hold Russian citizenship. This is nearly three times the number as compared to second place Spain, (94,000), and some 42 times more than their numbers in Hungary (6,200). Given the huge disparity in numbers then it is surprising that the German political landscape should single out Hungary in unison as the only one in Europe requiring border checks in order to prevent security breaches by supposed Russian agents.
Graph: Statista
Via ZDF; Featured Image: Pixabay