It was now sending thousands of refugees or migrants north, angering Slovenia and Hungary.
Advertisement
Hungary this week sealed its border with Serbia, cutting off a major entry point into the European Union for tens of thousands of migrants from the Middle East, Asia and Africa travelling up through the western Balkans.
Interior minister Ranko Ostojic said if the crisis continued “it is a matter of time” before the border was shut completely, though Milanovic, in his remarks, questioned whether even that would keep migrants out.
Hungary reversed its stance from earlier in the week and let the new arrivals in.
Hungary’s Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said he believed the police reaction was justified and the criticisms unfounded because the migrants, he said, were throwing stones and concrete at officers. Milanović said to migrants, “You are welcome in Croatia, and you can pass through Croatia“.
Numerous migrants say they want to reach Germany.
Countries are taking drastic measures, believing it will curb the number of migrants crossing into western parts of Europe.
In Germany, meanwhile, the government introduced a draft law to stop the deluge of asylum seekers that have been gravitating to Europe’s strongest economy, with authorities bracing to receive some 800,000 refugees, majority coming from war-torn Syria and Iraq.
Hungary’s decision to close its borders to Syrian refugees has intensified the growing crisis enveloping Europe.
The move came after Slovenian authorities detained 150 refugees who crossed the border from Croatia on Thursday evening.
“Our capacity is absolutely full, we are asking from them that all the countries on the way, on the route – that means Greece, Macedonia and Serbia – they have to respect all contracts, all memorandums, all conventions”. Milanovic said at a news conference.
It has closed its rail service to Croatia.
Fearing a surge of refugees from Croatia, Austria and Slovenia called Thursday for an urgent, all-EU response.
Advertisement
On Friday morning, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban announced that a 41-kilometre long fence along the country’s border with Croatia, and not separated by the Drava river, will be completed by the end of Friday. That blocked the easiest route to Germany, where many hope to apply for asylum. “Our parents are in a refugee camp in Turkey”, he says.
