The Foreign Minister has said it is in Hungary’s national interest that Turkey resolves the migration issue in the direction of Syria rather than in the direction of Europe.
During an official visit to Baku to attend a meeting of the Turkic Council, Péter Szijjártó, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, said Hungary’s sole consideration with regard to Turkey’s actions in Syria was dictated by the Hungarian national interest, and this meant bypassing the possibility of “hundreds of thousands or even millions of illegal migrants” from turning up at Hungary’s southern border and being “forcibly held back” there.
The Minister noted Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoǧan’s statement that unless Syrian migrants were repatriated then he would “open the gates to Europe”. He reaffirmed the Hungarian government’s standpoint on migration, namely that it was not a fundamental human right.
Minister Szijjártó said Hungary would “gladly work with Turkey” to ensure that families forced to leave their homeland could be installed in a safe zone in Syria.
The Minister noted that Turkey had so far spent USD 40 billion on the four million migrants staying in the country. Now, he was answerable to public opinion concerning how long to prolong the situation, Minister Szijjártó said, adding that this is why Erdoǧan had decided to repatriate Syrian migrants to a safe zone.
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