Huge increase: – 500 suspected smugglers caught so far in 2022

In recent years, for example, there has been an increase in the number of arrests: in 2020 there were 311 for the whole year, in 2021 there were 441 and in 2022 there were 500 arrests of suspected smugglers.

“Action-sharp” at the limit
Interior Minister Gerhard Karner referred to a “sharp action” at the borders that has been taking place since May: “Checks are carried out in particular at border crossings, in the heavily trafficked road network and in basic service accommodations,” he said and stressed, as did Defense Minister Klaudia Tanner the good cooperation with the armed forces as part of the relief operation.

Record budget against people smugglers
The budget of the Ministry of the Interior for the coming year is 4.7 billion euros – 700 million euros more than this year. As he announced Monday, Karner wants to use the additional resources to fight smuggling and illegal migration, terrorism and all forms of extremism and cybercrime.

“The Ministry of the Interior’s highest budget to date is a sound investment, a necessary investment for the safety and protection of our population,” Karner emphasized. As regards people smuggling and illegal migration, border protection in Serbia and Hungary is being stepped up and Austria wants to use drones to secure the Serbian-North Macedonian border. Deportations of illegal migrants must already be enforced in the states of the Western Balkans – for Karner “an important signal against the smuggling mafia”. To get them in place, new equipment – 48 additional drones, thermal imaging buses and eight heartbeat detectors – and modern transmission technology will be purchased.