EU risks 'disintegration' over refugee crisis, warns top diplomat
European countries have been locked in debate over how best to solve a refugee crisis that is the biggest seen since World War II
A man holds a child after a boat with refugees sunk attempting to reach the Greek island of Lesbos (AFP)
Published date: 29 October 2015 09:49 GMT
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Last update: 8 years 5 months ago
The European Union risks disintegrating if it fails to respond to its worst refugee crisis since World War II collectively, its top foreign policy chief warned in an Italian newspaper on Thursday.
Federica Mogherini said that if the EU merely relied on national responses to a European issue, "the crisis will get worse, with chain reactions from public opinion and national governments".
To prevent this, she told the Il Sole 24 Ore newspaper, the bloc needed to be equipped with "instruments up to the challenge" without which, she warned, "there is the risk of disintegration".
The comments came a day after Austria announced plans to build a fence at a major border crossing with fellow EU state Slovenia to "control" the migrant influx.
The move would be a blow to the bloc's cherished passport-free Schengen zone.
After hastily arranged talks between European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and Austrian Chancellor Werner Faymann, the two issued a statement stating that "fences have no place in Europe".
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