http://www.srbija.gov.rs/vesti/vest.php?id=82287
Quote:
Illegal immigrants, asylum seekers joint problem of Serbia, Hungary
Subotica, 12 Dec 2011 – Director of Police of the Serbian Ministry of the Interior Milorad Veljovic and Chief Captain of the Police of Hungary Jozsef Hatala said today in Subotica that the problem of illegal migration and asylum seekers significantly burdens both Serbia and Hungary, which is why both countries see it as a priority.
For Serbia a good coverage of the border with Macedonia and Greece is the most important since the influx of immigrants is the largest there, the Director of the Serbian police said.
In relation to 2010 when approximately 2,500 illegal immigrants were recorded, this year this number has already grew to 9,500, Veljovic specified and reiterated that this is a big problem for the state and the police.
He explained that not only border police are included in the fight against illegal immigrants but also the criminal police, which helped arrest in our country several criminal groups that were involved in the illegal transfer of people to Hungary.
Hatala said that cooperation between the Hungarian and Serbian police forces can be an example to other countries because despite the huge pressure at the end of July and in August with an increased number of illegal border crossings, their synchronised operations in the previous period have led to a considerable decrease in the number of illegal crossings in November.
He added that 4,850 immigrants were caught in Hungary and returned to Serbia this year, which is 27% more than last year.
At the previous meeting in October Veljovic and Hatala agreed on concrete steps aimed at reducing the number of illegal border crossings.
At today’s meeting they underlined that their joint operations have already begun to yield good results, and scheduled the next meeting in two months when they will once again analyse their joint work.
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This is interesting. They say that illegals into Serbia are largely from Macedonia and Greece. And illegals from Serbia into Hungary are a problem. So human traffickers are using Serbia as a conduit for illegal immigration. Hungary is in the north and Macedonia is in the south. Kosovo, seized by once illegal immigrants from Albania is also in the south. And there are currently problems with Albanians running Kosovo who are trying to control the borders between Serbia and Kosovo which the Serbs do not recognize as independent. NATO and the EU are involved and things are getting a little hot.
9,500 illegals is a huge number for a small country like Serbia.