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Stability in Western Balkans critical: Hungarian defense minister

Xinhua, May 3, 2016 Adjust font size:

Hungarian Defense Minister Istvan Simicsko underlined the importance of stability in the Western Balkans to Hungarians and the rest of Europe, when addressing a news conference here on Tuesday with his Macedonian counterpart Zoran Jolevski.

The two defense chiefs had just concluded a meeting on boosting military cooperation between their countries, on the migration crisis -- both countries lie on one of the main migration routes linking the Mediterranean and Western Europe -- and on the upcoming Warsaw NATO summit in July.

Simicsko voiced his appreciation of Macedonia, a non-EU member, for its share in the management of the migrant crisis. Macedonia has been manning checkpoints and restricting passage of thousands of people wishing to cross border.

Simicsko said Hungary was ready to assist Macedonia by sharing information and, if necessary, by providing additional border-control forces. Hungary has also offered to train Macedonian military personnel, he said.

Meanwhile, Jolevski called for a comprehensive European strategy in managing the migration situation, one in which everyone does their share including Macedonia, Turkey, and Serbia, all of which aspire to EU membership.

Simicsko said Hungary continued to support Macedonia in its efforts to join both NATO and the European Union. Endit