“Hungary in no way differentiates between people on a religious basis”, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó said with relation to the migration crisis in an interview for CNN on Friday.

Mr. Szijjártó reminded the press that Hungary had suffered from a wave of mass immigration in 2015. Four hundred thousand people crossed the border in violation of the law and without following regulations, and their arrival instilled fear in the Hungarians people. This is why the Government had to take steps to protect the country’s southern border.

In the interview, the Foreign Minister, who took part in the General Debate of the 72nd Session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, also repeated Hungary’s standpoint according to which the European Union’s decision on the mandatory resettlement of refugees is dangerous and bad.

“The recent ruling by the European Court of Justice does not state that Hungary must immediately accept illegal immigrants. The ruling concerned the procedure according to which the quota resolution was issued”, he highlighted.

In reply to a question on Hungary’s membership of the European Union, Mr. Szijjártó said that membership of the EU is advantageous to Hungary, but it is also advantageous for the EU to have Hungary among its member states.

The Minister stressed that Hungary is demanding a fair distribution of burdens, pointing out that the country has spent eight hundred billion euros on protecting the whole of the European Union and the Schengen Area by defending its borders.

He also objected to the fact that many European leaders ae not placing enough emphasis on guaranteeing the security of the continent.

Mr. Szijjártó also spoke about the challenges facing Central Europe during his speech before the UN United Nations General Assembly earlier in the day. According to the Hungarian Foreign Minister, these include illegal migration and the increasing threat of terrorism in Europe, the need to establish a balanced cooperation between East and West, and protecting the rights of national minorities.

(MTI)