Hungary could send refugees who enter the country to Brussels, announced the head of the cabinet of the Hungarian Prime Minister, Gergely Gulyas.
Budapest could decide on this step if it fails to reach an agreement with the European Commission regarding the June decision of the Court of Justice of the European Union on a fine of 200 million euros due to the asylum policy.
“After the asylum procedure, we will offer all migrants at the Hungarian border the possibility of free transportation to Brussels,” said Gulyas and emphasized:
“If Brussels wants migrants, let them have them.”
He added, as reported by the “Politico” portal, that the asylum seekers there can then negotiate with the European Commission about their care.
The threat is related to the June decision of the Court of the EU, which fined Hungary more than 200 million euros and another million euros for each day of delay due to non-implementation of the court’s ruling from 2020 in the field of asylum policy.
The European Commission turned to the court because it assessed that Hungary did not comply with the judgment from 2020, when the Court of Justice of the EU found that Hungary did not comply with the rules of EU law, including in the area of procedures related to the recognition of international protection and the return of third-country nationals.
Specifically, it was about restricting access to the international protection procedure, illegally detaining asylum seekers in transit areas and violating their right to stay in Hungary until a final decision is made.
Gulyas called the situation created by the June court decision “unacceptable, intolerable and unfair.”
“Budapest hopes to resolve the situation in talks with the European Commission, and will consider sending asylum seekers to Brussels if they fail to reach a reasonable agreement,” Gulyas said.
According to him, Hungary is also considering filing a lawsuit in order to get some funds from the European Commission to pay the fine. She would ask Brussels to participate in the costs of protecting her borders from illegal crossings, AA writes.
