Migration is a security risk, and without security Europe and individual nations will be lost, Szilárd Németh, Parliamentary State Secretary of the Ministry of Defence said talking to journalists on Wednesday in Tusnádfürdő.

The parliamentary state secretary, who came to Tusnádfürdő on the occasion of the 30th Bálványos Summery Open University and Student Camp, said without security, European welfare, European peace and the existence of nations are untenable, and today this security is most at risk from migration. He added that already in 2015 when migrants arrived in Europe in unprecedented numbers we had the opportunity to experience this.

Mr Németh took the view that we will have to deal with this migration pressure for a long time to come, the causes which lead to migration processes in Africa and Asia have not abated, and the Western world has been unable to help with their elimination, he added.

He observed that Hungary is at the vanguard in providing assistance. As part of the Hungary Helps Programme, Hungary builds hospitals, refurbishes schools and supports communities with a view to helping people stay in their native land.

Mr Németh highlighted that the Brussels and other bureaucrats whom the people “sent packing” in the May EP elections continue to push for the introduction of mandatory quotas; their goal is to ensure that migrants come to Europe in unlimited numbers.

These efforts are financed by George Soros who believes that nation states are in the way of his aspirations. Nation states can be weakened if other peoples flood Europe. This is the way to create a new “Soviet Union”, a United States of Europe which they would like to control from Brussels, the government-party politician said, also mentioning the role Ferenc Gyurcsány and his people seek to play in this.

The parliamentary state secretary pointed out that, by contrast, the Hungarian government firmly believes that the borders of Europe must be protected as is laid down in various European documents. Hungary has fully honoured this obligation; in 2015 Parliament adopted decisions which ensure that the Hungarian borders are duly protected, and since then migrants have not come to Hungary in significant numbers.

The Hungarian Defence Forces, too, take part in this mission, he stressed, indicating that next year HUF 616 billion will be available for defence purposes. Next year, in total – in combination with the internal affairs chapter – Hungary will spend HUF 173 billion more on the maintenance of security than in 2019.

The defence chapter of the budget is now two and a half times the size of the defence allocation that was made available during the Gyurcsány Government, he pointed out. As a result, they are able to strengthen the personnel and armaments of the defence forces, and this will also lead to moral strengthening.

He also mentioned that during the Gyurcsány Government 18,000 soldiers “were laid off,” and in 2010 the country had 17 reservists. Today these 18,000 soldiers have returned to the defence forces, and there are eight and a half thousand voluntary reservists as well.

He added that the Hungarian government appreciates and respects soldiers, and wishes to provide appropriate financial circumstances for them. This is why they have implemented a 50 per cent pay rise which will be followed by another rise in 2020. He indicated that in the autumn the government and Parliament will decide on the rules which provide for its implementation.

They would also like to introduce a new element, the service fee of voluntary reservists, thereby creating a complex career model, he indicated.

The goal is to enable Hungarian soldiers to perform their armed service to the highest possible standards, and amidst appropriate circumstances, Mr Németh said, adding that they wish to create the region’s most effective and most modern army.

(Ministry of Defence/MTI)