Serbia To Step Up Migrant Controls At Macedonia Border

Serbia says it will step up efforts to halt illegal immigrants crossing its border from Macedonia.

Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic made the announcement on July 1, after Hungary said it would erect a fence on its border with Serbia to stop the flow of migrants -- most of them from Africa and the Middle East.

Vucic said in Budapest after meeting Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban that the fence was "not pleasant" for Serbia and that, with Hungary's help, controls would be increased at Serbia's border with Macedonia.

Orban said the 4-meter-high fence Hungary wants to build along a 175-kilometer stretch of its border with Serbia is a "forced measure" not aimed at its southern neighbor.

Hungary says police have detained more than 67,000 illegal immigrants this year, nearly all arriving from Serbia.

More than 34,000 migrants have been stopped and sought asylum in Serbia, mainly crossing from Macedonia and Bulgaria.

Based on reporting by Reuters and AP