Austria and Hungary Join Forces to Combat Smuggling Activities

According to the Ministry of Interior of Austria, the cross-border cooperation between the Austrian and Hungarian authorities has been called “Operation Fox”, representing a new operational concept, AtoZSerwisPlus.com reports.

Operation Fox officially started last week, on December 13, 2022, on the Austro-Hungarian order, and since then, the authorities have been making sure to prevent any kind of illegal movement and smuggling.

Commenting on the operation, the Minister of Interior of Austria, Gerhard Karner, said that the authorities are doing everything they can to prevent smuggling as well as asylum abuse.

“The Austrian police officers have the task of consistently and firmly stepping on the asylum brakes. We have to fight the smuggling mafia and prevent asylum abuse,” Minister Karner stated.

The Austrian Ministry of Interior has further explained that Operation Fox is intended to be “another piece of the puzzle” in border protection, and the same stressed that the operation support both Austrian and Hungarian authorities in the fight against smuggling.

In addition, the same revealed that the authorities would be using that available equipment such as drones, and helicopters, among others, to keep movement at the border under control.

“In order to be able to act against organized smuggling crime with the greatest possible effectiveness, all available technical means are used to cover up. All available high-tech equipment such as thermal imaging devices, drones, special vehicles and a helicopter is used in order to be able to reduce the number of refugees apprehended even on impassable terrain,” the statement of the Ministry reads.

According to the Ministry, the border areas at Burgenland are the most affected, suggesting that they keep registering the highest number of those trying to enter illegally. Data show that in the past few months, a total of 47 people smugglers as well as 10,8000 refugees have been captured in Burgenland border areas and around Andau.

Apart from introducing stricter measures at its border to prevent the illegal movement of migrants and smuggling activities, the Austrian authorities have said that they are also ready to provide support to other countries in managing the situation.

Earlier in November, the Austrian authorities said that they would continue providing support to North Macedonia in protecting the border with Greece until the end of 2023.

Back then, the Ministry of Interior of Austria stressed that the border area between North Macedonia and Greece is critical and suggested that cooperation is important when it comes to fighting illegal migration and people smuggling.