site.btaBulgarian Embassy in Belgrade Approaches Serbian Foreign Ministry over Foreign Minister Interview about Migrants

Bulgarian Embassy in Belgrade Approaches Serbian Foreign Ministry over Foreign Minister Interview about Migrants

Sofia, August 21 (BTA) - The Bulgarian Embassy in Belgrade has approached the Serbian Foreign Ministry asking for clarification in connection with an interview of Serbian Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic in Belgrade's Danas newspaper, the Bulgarian Foreign Ministry said in a press release.

The Serbian side says the matter concerns inaccuracies in the translation in the Bulgarian media of what Dacic said. According to the Serbian side, Dacic said that because of Hungary's wall, the refugees will be forced to themselves find other ways to reach the desired goal and this would probably redirect the traffic to Croatia and Bulgaria.

"I do not believe Serbia will follow Hungary's example and build a wall on its Macedonian border at some point to stop the inflow of refugees and migrants, said," Dacic said, quoted in English by the Serbian news agency, Tanjug.

Asked what Serbia will do and what measures it will undertake if, because of the wall at the Hungarian border refugees and migrants trying to reach EU Member States via Serbia stay longer on Serbian territory, Dacic says that longer stay will not be reached. "They will go via Croatia and Bulgaria," he says. Dacic says that migrants know where they can go and where to cross in order to reach the desired ultimate goal. As a consequence, this means that Serbia will not have to build campsites for asylum seekers because their number is not expected to grow once the Hungarian wall is built, Dacic says.

Asked to explain what would happen if Croatia also decided to build a wall at the border with Serbia, Dacic noted that in this case migrants are not expected to arrive to Serbia but rather to bypass it on their journey to the EU.

In the press release the Bulgarian Foreign Ministry says it uses the opportunity to note that the refugee pressure in the Balkan region creates risks for the stability of all countries. This requires stronger communication among the competent state institutions, along with joint efforts and cooperation. Politicians in the region who make statements concerning other neighbouring countries need to be especially careful in what they say and take into account the level of responsibility required by the crisis situation. The responsibility politicians have towards the public needs to be shared by the mass media as well, through their accuracy and professionalism, says the press release.