When receiving Polish border guards who had arrived to protect the Serbian-Hungarian border section, Minister of Interior Sándor Pintér said that without the protection of external Schengen borders, European law, justice and freedom are at stake in internal regions.
Speaking at a riot police station, the Minister recalled that the leaders of the Visegrád countries have decided to jointly enforce EU regulations and the Schengen Agreement at Hungary’s external Schengen borders. He pointed out that Hungary and Poland think alike and act together: they are giving a common answer to the mass migration affecting Europe.
On Friday forty-three Polish border guards with thirteen vehicles arrived in Hungary to help their Hungarian counterparts in protecting the external borders. “We continue to provide shelter to genuine refugees, but we will prevent the entry of illegal migrants and adventurers who do not respect our laws”, Mr. Pintér said.
According to the Minister, the country is not able to bear the burden caused by illegal migration alone; this is why there is a need for cooperation. He told the Polish border guards that by carrying out their tasks, they are protecting their own country, Hungary and the European Union as well.
After his speech, the Minister gave armbands to the Polish border guards – similarly to the Czech and Slovak policemen who arrived in Hungary earlier – asking them to do their tasks wearing them. These armbands have been designed especially for this purpose. There is a “V4” symbol within a blue circle in the centre of the armbands, in which the stars refer to the flag of the European Union, surrounded by the national flags of the V4 countries: the Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary and Slovakia.
Following the ceremony, Mr. Pintér told journalists that the Hungarian and Slovenian national chiefs of police have signed a cooperation agreement based on government agreements. Pursuant to this, Hungary is expected to send 50 Hungarian policemen to Slovenia on Monday, to carry out operations along the external borders of the country.