V4 premiers hold talks with Ursula von der Leyen

V4 premiers hold talks with Ursula von der Leyen

Hungarian PM Viktor Orban, Czech PM Andrej Babis and Polish PM Mateusz Morawiecki met with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in Brussels on Thursday. Slovak PM Igor Matovic was represented by the Polish head of government, who currently holds the Visegrad countries rotating presidency.

POLITICS SEPTEMBER 24. 2020 13:17

Speaking about the new EU migration pact at a press briefing following the meeting, Polish PM Mateusz Morawiecki said the V4 share the same view. There are certain rules that they will definitely observe, including border control and providing help locally, where the troubles are. „We are open to support, but we also have certain rules that we will follow,” he added.

Regarding the situation in Belarus, he said the V4 had presented its plan for the country. The proposal consists of 10 points, he said, adding that he hoped that the people of Belarus would not be left alone. It is not enough for Poland to help, the EU should also join in, he stressed.

Illegal migration must be stopped and there has been no breakthough in this aspect, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said.

„The relocation mechanism, or quota, is still called the same and – secondly – the fundamental approach has also stayed the same: their aim is to manage migration, instead of stopping it. Hungary believes that the migrants need to be stopped. It s true that a lot of changes have been made, but there is no breakthrough. A breakthrough would imply that no one could enter the EU without permission. Illegal migration must be halted,” Viktor Orban said.

Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis agreed with Viktor Orban and voiced his opinion that migration must be stopped and the relocation quota scheme must be changed. In order to achieve this, negotiations must continue, including consultations with African countries, and a long-term strategy must be developed for Syria and Libya. „People from these countries need to be detained and sent back to their homeland, where they should be provided help,” he said. ” Concerning the coronavirus pandemic, PM Babis called for closer cooperation.

POLITICS

Tags:

andrej babis, mateusz morawiecki, migration pact, ursula von der leyen, v4, viktor orban