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Austria able to implement own measures to curb asylum seekers influx: FM

Xinhua, June 14, 2016 Adjust font size:

Austrian Minister for Foreign Affairs Sebastian Kurz on Monday reiterated Austria's position on being able to establish and implement its own measures to curb an influx of asylum seekers.

Kurz made the remarks during talks with European Union (EU) foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini.

The two officials met at a meeting to mark the 20th anniversary of the Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO) held in Vienna.

Kurz's office confirmed in a statement that he had conveyed the present position of the government that "Austria must set national measures, in order to prevent being overwhelmed," to Mogherini.

Additionally, simply "waving through" migrants into Europe could no longer work, a stance the minister said has now become "common sense" in Europe.

Mogherini in turn had reportedly acknowledged that the present system "does not function," and that the European Commission is becoming more engaged in this regard.

Both officials had also stressed the need for humanitarian aid from the EU and member states in the countries of origin of the refugees in order to address the root causes of the crisis, and for legal avenues for migration to be opened via resettlement programs. Endit