Interior Minister: There will be no joint border control

Austria’s stance is that cooperation among countries on the migrant route would be a sensible reaction

Slovenia’s Minister of the Interior rejected the possibility of joint border controls. Austria’s next steps will be known in a couple of days. Foto: BoBo

Interior Minister Vesna Györkös Žnidar rejected the possibility of a joint Slovenian-Austrian-German control on our southern border. The minister says that such action could create "a pocket" trapping refugees.

According to the minister, Slovenia’s cooperation with Austria is currently good. "In the event of unilateral decisions by Austria and Germany, Slovenia will act accordingly and undertake appropriate measures," announced minister Györkös Žnidar.

The Minister of Interior assured that talks of a joint Slovenian-Austrian-German control on the country’s southern border are not taking place, rejecting such a possibility. That, which Slovenia would have to implement under this potential agreement, should already be implemented by Croatia on its borders, she added.

Minister Györkös Žnidar says Croatia’s role in the whole process is extremely important, as without its constructive cooperation in setting up joint rules there can be no quick solution to controlling the flow of refugees. The minister says that a meeting with Croatia’s new interior minister will take place immediately after the forming of the new Croatian government. She also hopes that the new minister will be more willing to engage in constructive talks.

New measures being prepared, some of them confidential
Interior Minister Vesna Györkös Žnidar added that Slovenia, with its active proposals, was striving to reach a point at which "the migrant situation on the Western Balkans route would be brought under control."

That was one of the reasons why PM Miro Cerar paid a visit to German Chancellor Angela Merkel. According to Györkös Žnidar, PM Cerar will in short send a letter to his counterparts explicitly proposing to start controlling the refugee flow at the Greek-Macedonian border. That would also be a positive for Slovenia.

Interior Minister Györkös Žnidar also announced new measures which she refused to reveal. She said some of the measures would be labeled as confidential. "Slovenia is preparing for different scenarios. If necessary, it will act in a consistent and determined way. We will do all that is necessary for Slovenia not to become a pocket for refugees," she said.

According to the minister, Austria still hasn’t’ begun refusing entry to those refugees not seeking asylum in Germany. However, if it does start implementing such measures, Slovenia will respond. The minister assured that Slovenia is ready for different kinds of scenarios.

A. Č.; translated by K. J.