Orban talks with Chancellor Faymann in Vienna – UPDATE

Vienna, September 25 (MTI) – Austria has “renounced” its friendship with Hungary “in the hardest of times” but the Hungarian government is willing to overlook this, Prime Minister Viktor Orban said in Vienna on Friday.

Orban spoke at a press conference at the Hungarian embassy after talks with Chancellor Werner Faymann and Vice Chancellor Reinhold Mitterlehner on Europe’s migrant crisis.

Orban said Hungary is willing to forgive Austria for “calling us Nazis”, a move which he said was “absurd” coming from an Austrian politician.

The prime minister said he suggested to his Austrian partners that the two countries try to help each other, arguing that “from now, legally we are in the same boat” because the migrant situation on the Hungarian-Croatian border is exactly the same as it is on the Austrian-Hungarian one.

No fence planned on Hungarian-Slovenian border 

He told that field work is under way on the border to “clean up” a strip of land on the border and make it suitable for deploying mobile equipment.

Since Slovenia is part of the Schengen area, nothing should be built there that cannot be “cleared” within a day, Orban said.

Orban: Schengen “lost” if border protection fails

Orban said if Hungary fails to protect its southern borders, Austria and Germany will face a daily influx of 10,000 or up to 250,000 migrants over the coming months, Orban told a press conference in the Hungarian embassy after talks with Chancellor Werner Faymann and Vice Chancellor Reinhold Mitterlehner on Europe’s migrant crisis.

The prime minister said Hungary’s fence on its border with Croatia constitutes a “political dilemma” as Croatia is a member of the European Union but not the Schengen zone. Orban said being a member of the Schengen zone comes not only with benefits but with obligations as well, which he said Hungary is prepared to fulfil.

Orban said “it doesn’t feel good to be building a fence,” adding that Hungarian police are aiming to protect their country’s borders in the most humane way possible.

Before closing the Hungarian-Croatian “green” border, Orban said he would seek the support of Visegrad group member states, and Hungarian government members will visit Croatia. Asked about whether the razor wire along the border would be fortified by a second fence, Orban said: “We do not have to wait for the construction of the second line to order to ensure closure of the green border.”

He said that Austria had acknowledged that “European forms” of border controls must be established on the Hungary-Croatia border, similar to those on the Serbian border.

Orban said Hungary originally had had two options. The first was for it to open a migrant corridor toward Austria, as recommended by Croatia. But this was rejected by Austria on the ground that it contravenes EU and international laws, he said. Orban said this leaves Hungary with the only option of setting up a patrol system between Hungary and Croatia, noting that, although reluctantly, Austria has accepted the proposal.

The Hungarian government does not plan to build a fence on the Hungarian-Slovenian border, he said, adding that field work is under way to “clear away” a strip of land on the border and make it suitable for deploying mobile equipment. Since Slovenia is part of the Schengen area, nothing should be built there that cannot be “cleared” within a day, he said.

Orban said the reason for his visit to Austria was that explaining Hungary’s actions to the world via the media was not sufficient. The looming unlimited supply of migrants has not yet entered the minds of European leaders, he added.

The prime minister said that Austria had “renounced” its friendship with Hungary “in the hardest of times” but the Hungarian government is willing to overlook this. Hungary is willing to forgive Austria for “calling us Nazis”, a move which he said was “absurd” coming from an Austrian politician, he added.

The prime minister said he suggested to his Austrian partners that the two countries try to help each other, arguing that “from now, legally we are in the same boat” because the migrant situation on the Hungarian-Croatian border is exactly the same as it is on the Austrian-Hungarian one.

Orban told his counterpart that Hungary wants to preserve traditionally good ties with Austria. Talks, he added, had been constructive and amid an atmosphere of good intention. And in spite of differences of opinion, there was a desire on everyone’s part to bridge these. “Austrian-Hungarian relations are in a better state than they were at 8 o’clock this morning,” he said.

Answering a question, the prime minister praised Serbia, saying that cooperation with Belgrade had been “exemplary” even when the crisis was at its worst. He said cooperation between the two countries only stumbled when migrants “attacked Hungary from Serbia’s territory and Serbian authorities did nothing to stop them”. Orban said that apart from that one mistake Serbia “acted just as an EU candidate country would be expected to”.

The prime minister was originally scheduled to meet Heinz-Christian Strache, leader of the Freedom Party of Austria (FPO), but the meeting was cancelled. Responding to a question, Orban said he knows of the concerns about FPO, but thought that in light of the results of the recent local elections in Burgenland province, and the fact that FPO and the Social Democrats formed a coalition government there, he could “talk with the party”. Austrian leaders, however, asked Orban not to meet the party’s leader, and the prime minister obliged, seeing as he had “travelled to Austria to improve relations”.

Photo: MTI