Hungary's PM Slams EU Refugee Fine Plan as 'Blow to the Solar Plexus'

Hungarian Prime Minister Victor Orban said Friday he had been left speechless by the EU’s plan to fine member states for refusing to take in refugees.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The European Commission said Wednesday that an EU country could opt out of accepting an asylum seeker if it agreed to pay 250,000 euros ($287,000) for their relocation elsewhere.

"There are no polite words to express my indignation," Orban said Friday in an interview with a Hungarian radio station. "It’s no joke. They are trying to take away Hungary’s right to decide who to live with."

Orban, who has been one of the fiercest opponents of the EU’s binding migrant relocation quotas, described the fine as a "blow to the solar plexus" and the "strongest propaganda against the EU concept."

The payment, dubbed "solidarity contribution" by Brussels, is part of a fairness mechanism designed to help those EU member states that are handling a disproportionate number of asylum seekers.