During his official visit to Bulgaria, Austrian Interior Minister Gerhard Karner expressed an extremely positive stance regarding the achieved results in border security. Minister Daniel Mitov welcomed the Austrian delegation with a detailed review of the measures taken to strengthen state borders.
Karner emphasized the drastic reduction in migration pressure, illustrating the change with specific figures - from initial 2000 attempts at illegal crossing daily to just 60 at present. This significant decrease represents convincing evidence of the effectiveness of the introduced border mechanisms.
The Bulgarian side presented large-scale investments in border infrastructure, highlighting the strategic importance of external borders. The Ministry has absorbed over 300 million euros from European funds for modernization of border facilities and surveillance systems.
As a specific example of technological improvement, a new sensor line 2,275 meters long along the Bulgarian-Turkish border was presented. This modern system represents another step towards increasing technical capacity for preventing irregular migration.
During the visit, issues of bilateral police cooperation were also discussed. Daniel Mitov emphasized the importance of joint efforts to counter criminal networks involved in migrant and drug trafficking.
The work program included a visit to the Regional Coordination Center in Elhovo, where 15 high-passability Ford Transit minibuses were handed over for the needs of the border police. This was followed by a helicopter inspection flight along the state border, which ended in the area of the 231st border pyramid near the village of Golyam Dervent.
The official meeting concluded with an exchange of expert opinions and confirmation of the common position on the need for solidarity and coordinated actions in the field of border security.