Hungary's stridently anti-immigration Prime Minister Viktor Orban welcomed today the new populist Italian government's refusal to allow an aid ship with 629 rescued migrants on board to dock in its ports, saying he hoped it would bring about a change in the EU's migration policy.
"Finally! I let out a huge sigh of relief!" Orban said at a meeting with his Slovak counterpart Peter Pellegrini.
"I was tired of hearing for years on end that the maritime borders can't be protected! I am now convinced that what was lacking wasn't the capacity, but the will," he continued. "We assure the Italian government of our complete support," he said, adding that he hoped Italy's stance "can bring a change to Europe's migration policy".
Anti-migrant messaging played a large part in the campaign which saw Orban win a landslide victory in elections earlier this year.
A total of 629 migrants -- including pregnant women and scores of children -- are currently crammed on to the Aquarius ship after being rescued off the Libyan coast on Saturday and Sunday.
The Spanish government has stepped in to offer the boat safe harbour but it could be another three to four days before it is able to land, according to the charity that runs the ship.
Slovak PM Pellegrini similarly backed the Italian government's action, saying: "We have to stop the policy which consists of saving everyone who throws themselves in the water: the coastguard or the police saves them and all of a sudden they've got onto EU territory."
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