EU-proposed migrant quotas widely debated at Visegrad 4 summit

The topic of mandatory migrant quotas proposed by the European Commission was widely-debated at the GLOBSEC Conference and Visegrad Four meeting in Bratislava on Friday.

Imposing any migrant quotas on European countries can't even be considered, French President Francois Hollande said Friday after a summit of the Visegrad Four countries here.

According to Hollande, the imposition of any "numbers" on European Union member countries by the European Commission isn't the right approach.

"We have to prevent migration streams from growing, and distinguish those who have the right to asylum and accept them in a dignified manner," stressed Hollande, adding that there's a need to tackle the causes why migrants want to leave their countries of origin.

Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico reiterated the V4's joint stance of rejecting the mandatory quotas proposed by the Commission.

Nevertheless, all V4 countries are ready to debate this issue and offer voluntary contributions towards resolving the problem.

Fico claimed that a voluntary approach can be much more effective and useful than mandatory quotas.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban defended the construction of a fence on his country's border with Serbia to help tackle the tide of illegal migrants.

Orban said that Hungary will protect its borders in line with international law. It's already begun the preparation work, while all financial and technical issues will be dealt with next Wednesday.

Polish Deputy Premier and Defence Minister Tomasz Siemoniak, said he believed that the introduction of mandatory quotas won't be approved at the EU summit next week, as many countries have their reservations.

Britain has reservations as well. British Prime Minister Davis Cameron stressed in Bratislava, that mandatory quotas aren't the solution. On the other hand, joint efforts are needed to calm the migrant situation in northern Africa and the Mediterranean.