17 August 2018 - The migrant crisis and the role of Montenegro in responding to it will probably be one of the main topics of conversation between Prime Minister of Montenegro, Duško Marković and German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, which will take place in Berlin. After this meeting, some more specific requests of the European Union and Germany when it comes to migrants should be known. Also, the country will find out whether Europe is ready to support small Montenegro which is in a delicate position as being the transit route for migrants.
The new wave of migrants is to be expected in fall already. The Ministry of Defense of Montenegro confirmed that it is necessary to protect the border from migrants. The Army of Montenegro started protecting the border with Albania yesterday and they are also going to be engaged in the control of borderlands and the zone of border crossing Božaj.
The Prime Minister recently conveyed a clear message in relation to the migrant crisis.
“In case of their huge inflow in our country, we planned to rehabilitate a watchtower where they could stay”, said Marković but he pointed out that Montenegro will not serve as a shelter for migrants.
Closing the borders of the European Union countries redirected the migrants and now they are looking for salvation in the European Union but going across countries of the Western Balkans.
One of the proposed solutions for solving this problem was opening shelters in the countries of the Western Balkans and one of the countries where such a shelter would be open is Montenegrin and neighbor, Albania. Hungarian Prime minister, Viktor Orban, donated 25 km of barbed wire to Montenegro since it is obvious that the country must be prepared.
Bosnia is strengthening the border control
Migrants do not want to stay in Montenegro. For them, it is just a transit country. Their ultimate goal is the European Union Member, Croatia. However, Croatia closed the borders and now they are forced to stay in Bosnia and Herzegovina or to come back to Montenegro.
Bosnia and Herzegovina are fighting a fierce battle with migrants. According to the media, pressure on the eastern part of the border is becoming greater but the Police in Bosnia is getting support from the State Investigation and Protection Agency and the police of Republika Srpska.
Croatian police beat migrants
The Guardian has reported recently that Croatian police uses violence against migrants and refugees who enter Croatia from Bosnia and Herzegovina and try to reach West Europe.
Not only are they beaten but they also end up being robbed and, in the best case, with broken phones.
Once the police catch the migrants, they take them back to the border by night and take them back to Bosnia and Herzegovina.
European Commission provided 90.000 EUR for humanitarian purposes as a response to the increase in a number of refugees. More than 2.000 individuals will benefit from this.
So, to sum things up: the situation really is delicate. We have to be human but we must not let this get out of control.
