Hungary threatens to send asylum seekers to Brussels
The Hungarian government has a plan to offer any migrant or refugee entering the country a "one-way ticket" to Brussels. The comments were made by Gergely Gulyás, a minister and Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orbán’s chief of staff, at the government’s weekly briefing on Thursday.
Gulyás outlined the plan in response to a 200 million euro fine issued against Hungary after the Court of Justice of the European Union ruled that the country was ignoring EU asylum laws.
The court in Luxembourg ruled in 2020 that Hungary was not complying with the EU’s rules on the treatment and reception of refugees and migrants. According to the court, asylum seekers there are “unlawfully detained” and deported from the country before they can appeal the rejection of their asylum application.
The court ordered Hungary to adjust its policy, but Orbán's government chose to ignore that ruling. In June this year, the Court of Justice called that an “unprecedented and exceptionally serious breach of EU law” and imposed a 200 million euro fine. Hungary must also pay an additional 1 million euros per day for as long as it ignores European rules.
"If Brussels wants migrants, it can have them"
On X, Orbán called the fines “outrageous and unacceptable”. Hungary hopes it can recover some of these costs from the European Commission by filing a lawsuit.
Gulyás now says that if the EU and Hungary fail to reach an agreement, the country will take unorthodox steps, such as offering asylum seekers entering the country a one-way ticket to Brussels.
“After the asylum procedure, we will offer all migrants at the Hungarian border the opportunity to be transported to Brussels voluntarily and free of charge,” said Gulyás. “If Brussels wants migrants, it can have them. Asylum-seekers can then negotiate there with the European Commission about their own care.”
The proposal is inspired by similar measures by the Republican Party in the US, Politico writes. Since 2022, Republican governors have transported undocumented immigrants to Democratic strongholds like New York, Los Angeles and Chicago in protest against federal asylum procedures.
Gergely Gulyás © PHOTO VINCENT VAN DOORNICK/HANS LUCAS
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