Work on the construction of a sample section of the temporary border control fence has begun just outside Mórahalom, on the Hungarian-Serbian border.
Illegal migration towards the continent has become a problem that is effecting the whole of Europe. An average of 1000 illegal immigrants cross the border into Hungary from neighbouring Serbia every day, and accordingly illegal migration has become a serious problem and the task of handling it a priority. 78,190 illegal border-crossers have been caught in 2015 so far, of which 77,600 entered the country via the Serbian border.
On 17 June 2015, the Government of Hungary approved a decision on handling this extraordinary migratory pressure, in which it ordered the construction of a 175 kilometre long and 4 metre high temporary border control fence aimed at preventing illegal crossing of the green boundary along the Hungarian-Serbian border.
At 8 am on 13 July 2015, the Hungarian Defence Force, backed by police security, began the preparatory works required for the construction of the temporary border control fence on the periphery of Mórahalom. A total of 43 military personnel from the 5th Bocskai Infantry Brigade, the 37th Ferenc Rákóczi II Engineering Regiment and the 86th Szolnok Helicopter Base are currently involved in performing the task.
The soldiers brought technical equipment to the site using eight vehicles from the Hódmezővásárhely barracks. Following the inspection of the site, they will complete the field works – felling trees and removing undergrowth, groundworks and road construction – required to begin construction of the temporary border control fence, for which purpose they are using a track-laying bulldozer and a universal earthmover.
The current phase of construction of the 150-metre sample section of the fence is being carried out jointly by the Ministry of Interior and the relevant bodies of the Ministry of Defence.