The Leader of SMER, Robert Fico, warns that the situation created by illegal migrants in the country is critical.Continue reading
Slovakia will temporarily reintroduce border controls at the Hungarian border from Thursday, until 14 October, the Bratislava government decided at its meeting on Wednesday.
Bratislava justified the measure on the grounds of the need to curb illegal migration. The reintroduction of checks at the Hungarian border comes a day after the Czech Republic and Poland introduced a similar measure at their borders with Slovakia on Wednesday. The reintroduction of border controls will apply along the entire length of the Slovak-Hungarian border and the checks will be flexible, i.e. they will be adapted to the current threat.
In its explanatory memorandum, the ministry identified the temporary introduction of border controls as a key measure to curb illegal migration. They explained that,
as illegal migrants who use Slovakia mainly as a transit country are mostly foreigners who cannot be deported due to administrative constraints and are not targeted for detention, they will remain in the country if they cannot move on.
According to the Ministry of Interior, the number of irregular migrants arriving in Slovakia via the Western Balkan route started to increase significantly in August last year. Between the beginning of this year and now, nearly 40,000 illegal immigrants have entered the country, 11 times more than in the same period last year.
The border control measure, approved by the outgoing Slovak government led by Ludovít Ódor on Wednesday, is valid for 10 days but can be extended.
Featured Image: Facebook Slovak Police