Abstract:
Refugees are people who are fleeing conflict or persecution.
They are defined and protected in international law, and must not be
expelled or returned to situations where their life and freedom are at risk.
More than a million migrants and refugees crossed into Europe in 2015,
sparking a crisis as countries struggled to cope with the influx and creating
division in the EU over how best to deal with resettling people. Although
Germany has had the most asylum applications in 2015, Hungary had the
highest in proportion to its population, despite having closed its border with
Croatia in an attempt to stop the flow in October. What the last few months
have shown is that many governments (notably in central and Eastern
Europe) are far more interested in preventing illegal migration than they
are in living up to refugee quotas. Some have also made clear that they are
prepared to use their armed forces to protect their borders if they have to.