New reception places for migrants agreed

Southeast European countries facing an unprecedented influx of migrants reacted cautiously yesterday to new EU plans to help stem the crisis, following an emergency mini-summit at the weekend.

The European Union pledged to help set up 100,000 places in reception centres along the migrant route through the Balkans, in a bid to defuse the rising tensions on its eastern frontier as tens of thousands pass through on their way to northern Europe.

A 17-point plan, announced after emergency talks between the heads of 10 EU nations and non-EU Albania, Serbia and Macedonia, including an undertaking that no country will let migrants through to an adjoining state without first getting their neighbour's agreement.

Another key element of the plan is to speed up information exchanges between countries to coordinate their efforts.

"It is crucial that commitments are fulfilled in practice. If that does not happen from (Monday) on, the situation will not improve significantly," Slovenian Prime Minister Miro Cerar told reporters after the meeting.

"In such a case, we continue along the path that I referred to at my arrival," he said, in reference to his comments ahead of the summit that the EU would start "falling apart" without immediate, concrete actions.

Macedonian President Gjorge Ivanov warned that his tiny Balkan nation, a key transit state, could host a maximum of 2,000 migrants if crossing points were shut down.

The EU's new reception places, to be provided with the help of the United Nations' refugee agency, the UNHCR, will help provide shelter and speed up registration of migrants, according to European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker.