Migrant crisis: Thousands arrive in Austria with EU talks due

Thousands more migrants entered Austria over the weekend as European leaders are set to push for a unified response to the crisis.

Austrian authorities are expecting more arrivals from Hungary on Monday.

Foreign ministers from four eastern European countries are holding talks on the crisis later, kicking off a week of intense diplomatic activity.

EU interior ministers are to meet on Tuesday, with leaders convening for an extraordinary summit the following day.

The crisis has exposed deep divisions among European states.

French President Francois Hollande has said in the EU, "no-one can be exempt" from taking in people with the right to asylum, while European Council President Donald Tusk said that the EU should help Syrian refugees to "a better life closer to their homes".

But at the meeting due later on Monday, the foreign ministers from Hungary, Poland, Slovakia and the Czech Republic are expected to reaffirm their opposition to Germany's call for a more even distribution of migrants.

Over the weekend, thousands of migrants continued to cross borders in southern and eastern Europe, many hoping to reach Germany and Scandinavia.

Image captionCrowds of migrants in Nickelsdorf are being ordered to "sit down" by the authorities

Austria welcomed 10,000 people on Saturday and predicted the same for Sunday.

In the town of Nickelsdorf on the border with Hungary, where hundreds of people have been camped out, two buses arrived during the night at the bus station, reports the BBC's Anna Holligan.

When they arrived, they picked up bottles of water and blankets, and then laid down on the concrete to sleep.

It looks a little bit like Armageddon, our correspondent says; there is rubbish everywhere, strewn across the ground; there are people sleeping wherever they can find a space, she says.

Most travelled in from Hungary and Croatia. Budapest is now rushing to finish a new fence along its Croatian border.

• What is the next route through Europe?

  Hungary has reopened its border with Serbia, but with strict controls - its closure earlier in the week sent large numbers of migrants into Croatia.

  Croatia initially welcomed the migrants, but then said it was unable to cope with the numbers and moved them over its border with Hungary, which quickly ferried them on to Austria.

  On Sunday, there were scuffles in the Croatian border town of Tovarnik as migrants struggled to board a train they believed would take them to Austria.

  Croatia's interior minister, Ranko Ostojic, told the BBC the situation was "impossible for a small country" like his, with 27,000 migrants entering in the past five days.

  The largest group arriving in Europe are Syrians escaping the conflict there, followed by Afghans, then migrants from Eritrea, Nigeria and Somalia, fleeing war and human rights abuses.

  A large proportion of those seeking asylum are heading to Germany, with Syrians forming the largest group of asylum claimants, followed by Albanians, Kosovans, Serbs, then Iraqis and Afghans.

  Many migrants reaching the EU from sub-Saharan Africa or the Western Balkans fail to get asylum, as they are classed as economic migrants.

  At least 13 migrants, including several children, died when their dinghy and a ferry collided off Turkey, the coastguard said. The boat was on its way to the Greek island of Lesbos.

  In a second incident, Greece's coastguard said 26 people were feared missing from a boat, also off Lesbos.

  The US has meanwhile said it would increase its worldwide intake of refugees from 70,000 in 2015 to 85,000 next year and 100,000 in 2017.

  

  Migrant crisis in Europe: Recent key dates

  • 13 July: Hungary starts building razor-wire fence on border with Serbia
  • 25 Aug: Germany says all Syrian refugees can apply for asylum there, regardless of which EU country they first entered
  • 2 Sept: Image of body of three-year-old Syrian Alan Kurdi, washed ashore in Turkey, moves public opinion worldwide
  • 12 Sept: Record 4,330 migrants cross into Hungary
  • 13 Sept: In a switch of policy, Germany introduces border controls with Austria; other EU nations later impose their own controls
  • 15 Sept: Hungary enforces tough laws on migrants crossing its border fence, prompting thousands to turn to Croatian route
  • 18 Sept: Croatia transports migrants over its border into Hungary, which ships them on to Austria
  • 19 Sept: Thousands cross into Austria, which prepares to send many on to Germany

  

  

  A note on terminology: The BBC uses the term migrant to refer to all people on the move who have yet to complete the legal process of claiming asylum. This group includes people fleeing war-torn countries such as Syria, who are likely to be granted refugee status, as well as people who are seeking jobs and better lives, who governments are likely to rule are economic migrants.