It is the duty of the State to protect its citizens, and it is therefore a reasonable expectation that all parliamentary parties should adopt a responsible decision on the Government’s counter-terrorism action plan.

János Lázár pointed out at the press conference Governmentinfo in connection with the five-party consultation to be held on Friday: the purpose of the consultation is to reach a consensus, as a result of which we should be able to guarantee the security of Hungary. He underlined that the Government would like to give the police and the military the same amount of powers that other European countries grant these agencies in the interest of the security of the people.

The Minister made clear that the Government is ready to discuss all opposition proposals on their merits with a view to reaching an agreement within the shortest possible time. We must protect everyone, and it is therefore a reasonable expectation that everyone should help us with this effort; we sincerely hope that a responsible decision will be adopted, he said.

Mr Lázár remarked: at this point in time there is no need to raise the current threat level, but all threats must be taken seriously.

Close connection between migration and terrorism

The more intensive the pressure of migration and Islam, the more intensive the threat of terrorism, the Minister heading the Prime Minister’s Office pointed out. Mr Lázár referred to the stringent controlling of those arriving at the border crossing points and the protection of the borders as priority tasks. He further stressed: while there is „silence about the quotas” in the EU at present due to the threat of terrorism, when the EU-Turkish agreement becomes a permanent mechanism, the EU will attempt to put the quotas into operation as well. He confirmed that the Government maintains its referendum initiative on the issue.

The Minister also reported that some one thousand local governments have adopted decisions to the effect that they support the Government’s anti-quota efforts. At the same time, with reference to Szeged he raised the issue of how many settlements there may be that are engaged in talks with Brussels and want to take in migrants.

(kormany.hu/MTI)