Hungary intends to sue Brussels for two billion euros

(Patria) - Hungary is exploring legal avenues to force the European Commission to reimburse it for funds spent on border protection, AP reported.

The Hungarian government has instructed its minister for European affairs to negotiate with the European Commission to resolve a dispute, for which Hungary was fined 200 million euros for violating EU asylum approval rules.

- In recent years, Hungary has spent two billion euros on protecting the external Schengen border without receiving any contribution from the EU, Gergely Gulyás, head of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán's cabinet, said at a press conference.

He was referring to the 29-country Schengen zone where people and goods can cross borders without identity checks.

- We want to recover these costs from the European Commission through legal means, he said, adding that they are even prepared to sue the European Commission.

Hungary's unwavering anti-immigration government has long been in conflict with the EU over its restrictive policy on providing protection to refugees and asylum seekers.

The conflict escalated in June when the European Court of Justice ordered Hungary to pay a fine of 200 million euros for persistent violation of EU asylum rules and an additional one million euros per day until it aligns its policies with EU laws.

The government in Budapest is delaying this payment. In response to the fines, Orbán's nationalist government threatened to provide immigrants with free bus transport from Hungary's southern border to the EU headquarters in Brussels, something the European Commission on Tuesday promised would provoke EU retaliation.

Gulyás clarified yesterday that only individuals granted political asylum from Hungary would be eligible for free travel to the Belgian capital.

- Illegal immigrants will not enter Europe through Hungary and through the southern Schengen border. Those granted political asylum, according to legal procedure and in accordance with EU rules, and based on their voluntary decision, are offered a one-way free journey to Brussels, he stated.

Gulyás also criticized Germany's recent decision to introduce border checks along all of its nine borders to curb irregular migration, a decision that has called into question the durability of the Schengen zone and threatened to shake European unity.

- Migration will dismantle Schengen. Germany is the one dismantling Schengen, Gulyás asserted.

Hungary must pay the fines imposed by the EU's highest court by September 17.