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Hungary completes 2nd border fence meant to stop migrants

Roszke - A second fence on the border with Serbia meant to stop any surge in the flow of migrants toward Western Europe has been completed, the Hungarian government said on Friday.

Interior Ministry State Secretary Karoly Kontrat said on Friday near the border town of Roszke that the new, 155km fence provides even greater security for Hungary.

"The Balkan route is invariably active and, as the summer approaches, a growing number of migrants is heading toward Europe," Kontrat said. "Preparations are needed for migration pressure which could be even bigger than until now."

Hungary built fences on the southern borders with Serbia and Croatia in late 2015, after about 400 000 migrants and refugees passed through the country.

Since then, Hungary has also introduced a series of new rules, the so-called "legal border closure",  such as the summary expulsion to Serbia of migrants who can't prove their legal right to be in Hungary, which have been disputed by human rights groups.

Prime Minister Viktor Orban is staunchly anti-migration and says Hungary doesn't want to solve its demographic crisis and increasingly acute labour shortage with migrants. 

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