Hungarian President János Áder offered his country’s assistance and experience to Poland in defending its borders during Polish President Andrzej Duda’s visit to Budapest.
Duda said at the joint press conference following the meeting that he spoke with János Áder in detail about the crisis situation on the Polish-Belarusian border and assured his Hungarian colleague that borders will be protected by all means at his disposal.
Duda said Belarus is “pushing” migrants to the Polish side, and that military exercises were being held along the Belarusian border with Russian and Belarusian soldiers. As such, a state of emergency was declared within a three-kilometer band along the Polish-Belarus border.
He added that Polish border guards are also currently supported by the army in guarding the border, and that Poland takes the task of guarding the EU-Schengen border “very seriously”.
Duda thanked Áder for offering Hungarian assistance in border control, welcoming Hungary’s experience. He referred back to 2015 and 2016, when there was a large flow of migrants at the Hungarian border — the external border of the European Union — and the Polish army helped protect that border.
The Polish head of state also discussed with János Áder the Via Carpatia highway project in Poland. As he said, the section in Poland connects the northern, Polish-Lithuanian and southern, Polish-Slovak borders, about 530 kilometers long in total. The investment is being implemented as planned, according to Duda.
Duda added that the Via Carpatia is not only part of the Visegrád Cooperation (V4) but also part of the Three Seas Initiative, a road that connects the shores of the Baltic Sea with the Black Sea and continues on to Greece.
“Via Carpatia is key for Europe,” he said, optimistic that the project would bring about an epoch-making change in road transport.
Title image: Hungarian President János Áder (center left) and Polish President Andrzej Duda (center right), flanked by first ladies Anita Herczeg (L) and Agata Kornhauser-Duda (R) in Budapest on September 9. (MTI/Noémi Bruzák)
