Busing Migrants Is Not a Hungarian Invention

The European Court of Justice has ruled that Hungary breached EU law by imposing restrictions on illegal migrants. In response, Hungary's government is set to bus migrants to Brussels. Busing migrants is not an unknown procedure: several US states bordering Mexico also rely on it to protest against the pro-immigration policies pursued by Democrat-led White House, the Migration Research Institute writes in its analysis.

Parliamentary State Secretary of the Interior Ministry Bence Retvari presents the fleet of migrant buses (Photo: MTI/Tibor Illyes)

From Syria and Afghanistan to Brussels? Rising tide of migration

Compared to last year, the number of arrivals at Hungary's southern border has decreased, but according to the European Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex), nearly 15 thousand people have chosen the Balkan route so far in 2024. The drop is due to coordinated operations by the Serbian police and gendarmerie at the end of October last year to dismantle accommodation used by migrants. Belgrade decided to toughen up after irregular migration came fully under the control of armed human smugglers, including former Afghan Taliban fighters.

The Serb gendarmerie is no longer on the ground, with migrants arriving at the Hungary-Serbia border mostly from conflict zones such as Syria and Afghanistan (Photo: MTI/Edvard Molnar)

However, the Serb gendarmerie is no longer on the ground, and the migratory pressure keeps growing. While in the first week of 2024, there was only one prevented illegal border crossing, this number rose to 295 in week 31 and 249 in week 32. Migrants arriving at the Hungary-Serbia border mainly come from conflict zones such as Syria and Afghanistan.

Cover photo: Parliamentary State Secretary of the Interior Ministry Bence Retvari presents the fleet of migrant buses (Photo: MTI/Tibor Illyes)