“It is the country, not the government, which has a stake in the 2 October referendum on the compulsory resettlement quota”, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó said on Saturday in Kötcse.

Arriving to attend the “Civil Picnic” event, the Foreign Minister explained to reporters outside the Dobozy Mansion, the meeting’s venue: “What is at stake at the referendum is that this is the first time in Europe that a nation has the chance to state what it thinks about immigration”. “If the people of Hungary make it sufficiently clear that they will not accept compulsory resettlement, not a single European leader can ignore it”, he continued.

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According to Mr. Szijjártó, the referendum is also important to the government, as it could reinforce its politics. “We will be able to go about our business in Brussels with a stronger mandate than any other government”, he added.

Many people don’t recognise the real danger that Europe is in, the Minister said. “We have to all intents and purposes placed the security of Europe in the hands of the Turkish government, while the European integration of the Western Balkans is moving forward slowly”, he pointed out.

“Meanwhile, European leaders are criticizing Turkey’s administration, whereas Turkey is the only thing holding back millions of migrants, and it depends on the Western Balkans whether the immigrants will stop before they reach Hungary’s southern border”, he added.

In reply to a question on Austrian-Hungarian relations, Mr. Szijjártó said that that the government has a problem-free relationship with the Austrian People’s Party, although there are conflicts with the social democrats. “We have made it clear to the Austrians that we are acting in accordance with European regulations; illegal immigrants must be sent back to where they first entered the territory of the European Union. Hungary was definitely not a first point of entry”, he emphasised.

Also attending the meeting was Minister of Interior Sándor Pintér, who told reporters that the government was planning to reinforce the fence along the country’s southern border and will begin further construction if the immigration situation worsens.

(Cabinet Office of the Prime Minister/MTI)