Visegrad Group plans joint border protection: Hungarian official

The four countries of the Visegrad Group -- Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary -- are planning a joint border protection project, Janos Lazar, the minister in charge of the Hungarian prime minister's office, said Thursday.

Preparations are underway and Prime Minister Viktor Orban is "taking the diplomatic measures," Lazar said, adding that the move was a demonstration of solidarity.

Speaking about Croatia, a member of the European Union but not of the Schengen zone, the common EU border zone, Lazar said that if Zagreb could not or would not meet its obligation to register migrants, its suitability to enter the Schengen zone had to be questioned.

He also said Hungary would soon be able to fully protect its border with Croatia as the fence it was building was nearing completion.

Austria, meanwhile, needs to decide whether it wants Hungary to close off its border with Croatia or organize a corridor which asylum-seekers would be able to use to travel to Vienna, he said. At the same time, he warned that if Austria and Germany ask for such a corridor, it would be tantamount to an invitation to continue the influx.

As of this week, 300,000 migrants will have entered Hungary since the start of the year.

Lazar said he supported Slovakia's rejection of an EU immigrant quota and was firmly opposed to establishing hot-spot refugee camps within the EU. He noted that between 5,000 and 10,000 people were traveling through Serbia daily in their effort to enter the European Union.

Lazar reiterated the charge that the EU was practicing "moral imperialism" when criticizing Hungary for its fences, which so far have worked to slow down the flood of migrants.

He again asked that assistance go directly to the crisis zones and called for respecting the wishes of those countries that did not want to receive migrants.

"We don't understand why we should receive immigrants just because other countries need them," he said.

Lazar also criticized U.S.-Hungarian billionaire George Soros for supporting the influx. European Central Bank financial experts have said immigrants are needed to boost the workforce of the recipient countries.

This year 291,618 migrants have been recorded in Hungary so far, 203,380 of which were registered at the Serbian border and 87,243 at the Croatian border. Endit