The Hungarian prime minister has denounced a pact that forces the members of the bloc to take in newcomers or pay €20,000 per refusal
Hungary will not comply with new EU requirements to take in immigrants starting from next year, Prime Minister Viktor Orban has said, blasting Brussels for launching “an absurd and unjust attack” on his country.
The EU Migration Pact, which was agreed upon on Monday and is expected to take effect next July, requires every member state to contribute according to its population size and GDP. The goal is to ease pressure on the most heavily affected countries, namely Cyprus, Greece, Italy, and Spain, the European Commission said.
States must either accept a set number of migrants relocated from the hotspots or pay €20,000 ($23,000) for each person they refuse to take in.
”As long as Hungary has a national government, we will not implement this outrageous decision,” Orban, a long-time critic of Brussels’ migration policy, wrote on X on Tuesday.
The Commission also identified Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czechia, Estonia and Poland as countries under “significant” migration strain. Hungary, however, was not included in that group.
Orban said the assumption that Hungary is unaffected by the migration crisis is “completely detached from reality.” He noted that tens of thousands attempt to enter the country illegally each year and are stopped by Hungary’s border guards and fence system.
In June 2024, the European Court of Justice ruled that Hungary must pay a €200 million lump-sum fine, plus a daily penalty of €1 million, for failing to comply with EU asylum law requirements.
Orban said last month that Hungary would rather pay the €1 million-per-day fine than allow illegal migrants in, arguing that paying was “better than living in fear,” and promising Hungarians a safe holiday season. Christmas markets have been targeted by Islamists in several high-profile attacks in recent years.
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The EU has grappled with heavy migration pressure for more than two decades. The involvement of European NATO countries in the collapse of Libya and Syria, and their backing of Ukraine in its conflict with Russia have driven millions of people toward the bloc.
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