PRAGUE (Sputnik) — According to the Teraz news portal, Kalinak said that the mission demonstrated the desire of Slovakia, which is currently presiding in the Council of the European Union, to give an example of coherent EU action for the protection of external borders.
Since the beginning of 2016, over 300 Slovak police officers have taken part in EU missions to protect the bloc's borders, the Slovak minister recalled.
Europe is currently facing a major refugee crisis, with hundreds of thousands of migrants attempting to reach deemed wealthy EU member states through various routes, including via Italy, Greece, Turkey and Balkan states.
According to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), over 300,000 people have arrived in Europe since the beginning of 2016, which is a sharp decline compared to the 2015 record, when over a million refugees and migrants fled to Europe.
