site.btaSocialist Party Wants Strict EU External Border Control, Financial Support for Front-Line Countries

Sofia, June 23 (BTA) - Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) leader Kornelia Ninova has sent a letter to EU leaders declaring herself in favour of more rigorous control of the EU external borders and continuous monitoring of all routes used by irregular migrants and human traffickers, the BSP said in a press release on Saturday.

The position is prompted by the informal European Council working meeting on migration and asylum issues, due in Brussels on Sunday.

"This includes financial and logistical support by the EU agencies and above all by FRONTEX for the front-line countries that are directly affected, as well as further strengthening and implementation of integrated border management and information exchange among Member States and agencies within the Union and with international partners," the letter reads.

"Bulgaria, as a EU external border, has its special responsibilities, as well as specific difficulties and problems, and this must be realized and acknowledged by our partners," Ninova says. "The principal objective is to avoid turning our country and the Balkans into a huge refugee camp, a sort of a buffer between conflict zones and Schengen Europe," she argues. "The risks of this happening are more than credible. A large part of the foreign nationals who enter without authorization do not qualify as 'refugees' and should be treated as illegal migrants, i.e. should be immediately returned to their countries of origin. The BSP insists precisely on such an approach."

According to the position, the option proposed by Germany is also unacceptable and unfeasible: signing bilateral agreements with countries like Bulgaria, Greece, Italy, similar to the EU-Turkey agreement, on financial aid in exchange of accepting and integrating migrants. "No society should feel uneasy about its lifestyle, security and culture," Ninova explains.

The Socialist Party insists on the setting up of crisis-resistant prevention mechanisms with a focus on strengthening external border protection and control.

"We regard the consistent efforts to finalize conflict settlement and find long-term and lasting solutions for peace and stability in the Middle East with the mediation and in dialogue with all parties concerned as a key to tackling the root causes of forced migration," Ninova emphasizes.