Joint contingent from Bulgaria, Austria, Romania and Hungary begins work to guard the Bulgarian-Turkish border
A joint contingent from Bulgaria, Austria, Romania and Hungary has begun work to guard the Bulgarian-Turkish border. The agreement on the establishment of the unit of border police officers from the four countries was officially signed on Monday in Svilengrad by the directors of the Border Police of Bulgaria and Romania, Anton Zlatanov and Cornel-Laurian Stoica, the Hungarian National Police, Janos Balogh, and the Austrian Director General for Public Security at the Ministry of the Interior, Franz Ruf.
The contingent will consist of 120 officers.
"If we are not able to protect our external borders, it means that we will not be able to protect our internal borders either," warned Hungarian Interior Minister Sandor Pinter. He stressed that with this agreement his country supports efforts to protect Schengen and external borders and welcomed the land entry of Romania and Bulgaria into Schengen.
The creation of the contingent represents an even stronger protection measure that provides security, according to Romanian Interior Minister Catalin Predoiu. “Organized migration is a global phenomenon and big business that destabilizes countries. In addition, organized flows of migrants also mean drug and arms trafficking,” Predoiu added.
He noted that his country will insist on more European funding and consolidation of the European Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex), as well as investments in technology and equipment for the Border Police, BTA reports.
Austria has been promoting effective border security measures for years, said Franz Ruff. He specified that efforts at national and international level show that his country is determined against illegal migration and human trafficking. He assessed the signing of the memorandum as an important step in the future cooperation between Austria and Bulgaria. Ruff emphasized that the officers sent by Austria are extremely trained and have international experience.
After the official meeting, the Director of the General Directorate of the Border Police, Chief Commissioner Anton Zlatanov, said that with the new contingent, the main commitment to protecting the Bulgarian-Turkish border will remain with the Bulgarian Border Police and the Bulgarian Army with 1500-1600 border guards and hundreds of military personnel.
Bulgarian Interior Minister Daniel Mitov stressed that guarding the European external border cannot and should not be the sole responsibility of member states on the front line. The new formation will complement the work of the Bulgarian Border Police, he said, and announced that thanks also to cooperation with the Turkish side, there is a steady trend of decreasing migrant pressure on Bulgaria from Turkey and effective protection of this border remains a top priority.
