EU approves additional 10 mln euros for Macedonia to handle refugee crisis

The European Commission here on Monday adopted an additional 10 million euros (11.2 million U.S. dollars) program to help Macedonia improve its border and migration management systems in the context of the refugee crisis.

Johannes Hahn, Commissioner for European Neighborhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations, said this new funding would help the authorities of Macedonia to improve border and migration management, and support their costs relating to the guest officers sent by European Union (EU) member states and Serbia to the country's southern border.

He said the refugee crisis had put a lot of pressure on the countries along the route and Europe must stand united in tackling this situation.

In 2015, around 1.3 million third-country nationals applied for international protection in the EU, Norway and Switzerland. The majority of these asylum seekers and migrants arrived via the Western Balkan route. The main route currently leads from Turkey to Greece, and further onwards through Macedonia and Serbia.

Several EU member states and Serbia have deployed their border guards to Macedonia's southern border to strengthen the country's border and migration management activities with respect to border checks, border surveillance and registration activities. Endit