Serbian security forces stepped up patrols and deployed an elite unit Wednesday on its border with Hungary, trying to halt a torrent of migrants that has triggered alarm in many European Union countries. The last few months have seen a massive exodus of mostly Kosovo Albanians fleeing poverty and unemployment in search for a better life in the European Union.
Kosovo, which declared independence from Serbia in 2008, is one of the poorest countries in Europe. Residents must cross through Serbia to reach Hungary, a member of the 28-nation EU. Serbian authorities say about 1,000 asylum seekers are caught daily by either Hungarian or Serbian border guards as they try to cross illegally through forests and freezing rivers. The migrants also include many Syrians, Afghans, Iraqis and others.
Some 23,000 asylum seekers reached Hungary during the first six weeks of 2015, compared to 43,000 in all of last year, Hungarian authorities said. Officials in Kosovo estimate at least 100,000 Kosovo Albanians have left since last summer.
“We want to earn some money to feed our children,” a Kosovo Albanian man caught on the border Tuesday by Serbian police told The Associated Press. He refused to be identified by name, fearing legal consequences. “We don’t see a future in Kosovo. … Back home, there are no jobs. We cannot live.”
Once migrants are inside Hungary, they can travel freely to most other EU nations. Many are seeking asylum in richer EU countries such as Germany, Austria, France or Sweden, and some even try to smuggle across the English Channel to Britain.
Serbian Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic, on a visit to Hungary, described the figures as “truly alarming” and pledged that Serbia will do “everything possible” to stop the migrant flow. “This is a European issue and the European Union has to take this issue seriously,” said Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto.
