The interior ministers of Bavaria and Hungary met in Budapest on Thursday to discuss security policy cooperation; both ministers stressed the need to take action against illegal immigration.
At a press conference following the meeting, Bavarian Minister of Interior Joachim Herrmann spoke about the fact that it is also in Hungary’s interests to keep the threat of terrorism at the lowest possible level in view of recent events in Western Europe.
Mr. Herrmann told reporters that similarly to Mr. Pintér he has also been in office since 2010 and has developed a good and trustful relationship with his Hungarian counterpart, adding that direct contacts between the Bavarian and Hungarian police are extremely important in view of the fact that they are cooperating with regard to many security policy issues. The Minister said it was important to prevent the illegal crossing of borders and for people who enter the Schengen Area to be clearly identified.
Mr. Pintér stressed that the fact that people in Hungary and Bavaria can live in safety is partly thanks to the cooperation between Hungarian and Bavarian police.
According to the Hungarian Interior Minister, both countries are facing similar problems, including illegal migration and the possibility of acts of terrorism that threaten the country’s security. Mr. Pintér told the press that action to facilitate tourism and economic cooperation were also a subject of discussion at the meeting.
“Although Bavaria is within the Schengen Area, it is nevertheless under significant pressure from illegal immigration, because of which it has temporarily reinstated border controls”, the Minister pointed out.
“Thanks to a major border security development project, we have successfully ensured that illegal immigrants cannot arrive in Bavaria or anywhere else via Hungary”, he added.
The two interior ministers said that an important element of their cooperation was the goal of ensuring that Hungary is not the target or source of any act of terrorism.
As part of their preventive action, the parties agreed to quickly and efficiently share all necessary information.