Belgium Labels Hungary's Plan to Bus Illegal Migrants to Brussels as a Provocation

Belgium's Foreign Minister and new EU Commissioner Hadja Lahbib yesterday criticised Hungary's plan to send bus loads of asylum seekers to Brussels.

This controversial statement was made by Budapest a few weeks ago, but only caught the attention of the Belgian minister on Monday. Lahbib called it ‘a provocation that contradicts European commitments’.

‘Migration policy is a common challenge that needs to be addressed in an orderly and solidarity manner by all member states,’ Lahbib wrote on X.

Lahbib is known for her tough stance on Budapest. In particular, during the Belgian EU presidency, Lahbib called on EU governments to consider moving forward with the procedure to strip Hungary, which took over the presidency in July, of its voting rights.

In late August, the Hungarian government announced that if a European Court of Justice ruling forced Budapest to adopt a ‘no-detention’ policy for refugees, it was ready to provide any migrant trying to enter Hungary with a one-way ticket to Brussels. 

Last Friday, Deputy Interior Minister Bence Retvári echoed this idea and held a press conference in front of buses bound for Brussels to clarify Budapest's message.

Belgian Secretary of State for Asylum and Migration Nicole de Moore also condemned the idea, saying it ‘shows a lack of respect for European institutions and common policies’.

As a reminder, Germany will introduce internal border controls at all land borders of the country for 6 months starting from 16 September to reduce the scale of illegal migration. In addition, additional security measures are to counter Islamist terrorism and serious cross-border crime.