A significant increase is being observed in the number of migrants arriving at the Greek islands according to the Chief Security Advisor to the Prime Minister.

In an interview on the public service television news channel M1, György Bakondi was asked about the fact that last year almost five times as many people tried to cross the border illegally on the Romanian-Hungarian border section as in 2016. The chief advisor said that these figures only relate to illegal border crossers apprehended on Romanian soil. These migrants come from three directions: from Serbia to Romania, from the Black Sea to Romania, and to the Hungarian border. Most of those apprehended had themselves registered with the Romanian authorities as asylum-seekers, he added.

Mr Bakondi indicated that the number of those coming to Serbia and Macedonia illegally is also relevant as some 150 to 180 illegal migrants are arriving at the Greek islands every day. He added that a significant increase is being observed in this figure. These people are being transported further into the interior of the continent, and they are also trying their luck at the Romanian border section, he said.

In answer to a question as to whether there will be a fence on the Hungarian-Romanian border as well, he highlighted that there is good cooperation with the Romanian border guarding agencies. He mentioned two elements of this cooperation: information sharing and border patrolling cooperation on the one hand, and the fact that those who are apprehended on Hungarian soil are “taken back” by the Romanian authorities.

He continued by saying that if a major flow of migratnts sets out on the Balkans route and Romanian territory becomes “a major transport route” on a long-term basis, the Hungarian government will have to consider the tightening of border controls, and if so, what that should entail. “The system is working for the time being”, Mr Bakondi said.

(Cabinet Office of the Prime Minister/MTI)