Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has threatened to give asylum seekers one-way tickets to Brussels in protest EU fines levelled at the country for breaching EU asylum rules.
The 17 European countries in their letter to the Commission are asking for new rules to allow governments to detain illegal migrants if they pose a risk to national security, as well as to force migrants to cooperate with authorities and ensure all EU countries use the same software to manage cases. While not in the EU, Norway, Switzerland and Liechtenstein are members of the passport-free Schengen area.
Austria’s nominee for the new European Commission, Magnus Brunner, is likely to take over the EU’s migration top job in the coming months, signaling a rightward shift in the EU’s approach to migration.
It remains to be seen if the future coalition government in Austria will pressure the EU to move even further rightward on migration policy. The FPÖ’s leader, Herbert Kickl, has accused other Austrian parties of a “sinister” plot to keep the far-right FPÖ out of a future coalition government in the country.
EU justice ministers will discuss migration at a meeting in Luxembourg next week.
