“Hungary is calling on the European Union to increase the funding it provides to the countries of Central Asia so they can protect their own borders and do not become transit countries of the migration process that is beginning to move in the direction of Europe, primarily from Afghanistan”, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó declared in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, at an international conference on terrorism and curbing extremism.
In a telephone interview with Hungarian news agency MTI, Mr. Szijjártó said that in his speech at the conference, which was organised by the United Nations, the European Union, the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), and the Tajik Government, he spoke about the fact that it is no longer an exaggeration to declare that the security of Europe begins in Central Asia.
“If the Afghans set out with the goal of migrating, they will for the most part be setting out for Europe. This is one of the reasons why Europe’s cooperation with Central Asia is extremely important, to enable us to avert a predominantly afghan wave of immigration from the region towards Europe”, the Minister said.
He called for a much closer level of information cooperation between the EU and the countries of Central Asia, to enable the timely identification of terrorists and terrorist suspects who want to reach Europe illegally.
“In comparison with the past few decades, the security risks in Europe are currently at their highest level, and accordingly new waves of illegal immigration must be prevented from setting out in the direction of the European continent, and from this perspective cooperation with the countries of Central Asia is extremely important”, Mr Szijjártó said.
With relation to this, he also mentioned that sentient in Pakistan is increasingly aimed at removing Afghan citizens who are there illegally from the country.
During his visit to Dushanbe, the Hungarian Foreign Minister held talks with Tajik President Emomali Rahmon, Foreign Minister Sirodjiddin Aslov, UN Under-Secretary for Counter-Terrorism Vladimir Voronkov and several foreign ministers from the countries of the region.
Mr. Szijjártó will be concluding a treaty on education, science and cultural cooperation, and signing a memorandum of understanding on water management cooperation with the relative minsters of the Tajik Government.
(MTI)
