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International Internet Magazine. Baltic States news & analytics Friday, 29.03.2024, 01:43

Latvian Interior Minister: taking in refugees should be voluntary for EU countries

BC, Riga, 23.04.2015.Print version
In an interview on this morning's edition of the "Latvijas Neatkariga televizija" (LNT) news program "900 Seconds", Latvian Interior Minister Rihards Kozlovskis (Unity) said that taking in refugees should be voluntary for EU countries, not something that is compulsory, reports LETA.

He said that Latvia has never shown the initiative to take in refugees, and that refugees themselves usually do not want to stay here, but travel further to other EU countries. Other member states are also in agreement that taking in refugees cannot be something that is compulsory, Kozlovskis added.

 

The interior minister said that Latvia could involve itself in helping the EU tackle its refugee problem by sending several border guards to participate in joint operations. ''We wish to assist in strengthening our outer borders,'' the minister said.

 

According to Kozlovskis, there are approximately 60 border guards already participating in various international operations around the world, and that if additional EU financing is granted, this number could be increased.






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