European Migrant Crisis: Battle intensifies between Hungary and EU

Hungary and the European Union is heading for a showdown over the EU’s refugee policy adopted in 2015, under which refugees would be redistributed and resettled across the European Union and every country will have to take part in that. Since 2014, millions of people have moved into Europe from war-torn regions in the Middle East and North Africa, who are predominantly Muslim in their faith leading to social friction in countries and giving rise to anti-immigrant nationalist parties.

Since 2015, Hungary’s firebrand Prime Minister Viktor Orban has defied the EU on migrant quota system since it became the law in 2015. Now, the European Union is issuing an ultimatum to Hungary to accept the EU law or get out. Hungary, Poland, and Slovakia have brought a case to the European Court of Justice (ECJ) in an attempt to overturn the migrant quota system. However, this threat is unlikely to deter Viktor Orban who has said in the past that he will not accept a single refugee in his country.

The court hearing is set to begin in May and a verdict is not expected before next year. The EU leaders won’t mind Hungary moving out of the EU as it can cause a lot more damages staying within the EU.