Hungary to close transit zone camps for asylum-seekers

In recent weeks, more and more Ukrainian and Russian nationals have been flocking to the US-Mexican border crossing of San Ysidro in a bid to seek asylum in the United States. Ukrainians manage to cross the border without too much difficulty, but Russians don't get such a warm welcome. A piece of US legislation known as Title 42 allow US authorities to turn away would-be refugees to prevent the spead of Covid-19. As a result, Russians are joining the ranks of thousands of migrants stranded in Mexico waiting to file their asylum applications. FRANCE 24's Quentin Duval reports.

British Premier Boris Johnson has announced a proposal to send unauthorized migrants to Rwanda for processing. The African country has in the past been slammed for a range of human rights violations.

Rwanda has struck a £120 million deal with the UK to take in asylum seekers that arrive in Britain illegally. Tens of thousands of people could be resettled under the agreement over the years. Refugee groups have slammed the move as unethical and expensive. Human Rights Watch tells us the move is cynical and unsafe.

UK plan to fly asylum-seekers to Rwanda draws outrage Britain announced a deal with Rwanda on Thursday to send asylum-seekers thousands of miles to the East African country, which it said would deter people-smugglers, but has been called inhumane.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and Brussels are at odds again. Hungary refuses to support the planned oil embargo against Russia. But now even former allies such as Poland are turning their backs.

Hungary's government is "holding European Union decision makers hostage" by refusing to join an EU-wide embargo on Russian oil, according to Lithuania's foreign minister. This comes as EU leaders continue their efforts to gather support for a sixth sanctions package on Russia from all 27 EU member states. The government of PM Viktor Orban has claimed that an import ban on Russian oil would ruin the Hungarian economy. Lithuania's Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis tells FRANCE 24 that "Europe is weaker" as a result, and that he is "still hoping Budapest will be responsible in their decisions".

A Rwandan government official has said the first 50 asylum seekers, sent from the UK under a controversial scheme, could arrive by the end of the May.

In the week that EU leaders agreed on a sixth round of sanctions against Russia, Polish Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs Pawel Jablonski speaks to FRANCE 24 about the effect he hopes the measures will have on the Russian economy, his disappointment at the Hungarian government's stance regarding sanctions and the latest developments in Poland's rule of law dispute with the European Commission.

The UK is set to deport an unspecified number of migrants of various nationalities to Rwanda, in a controversial deal that was given the green light by British courts. Rwandans are watching events unfold with skepticism.

For the latest edition of Europe Now, we head to Poland and Hungary. These two EU members both border Ukraine and have both taken in large numbers of Ukrainian refugees. But on more political issues, their governments' responses to the war have been drastically different. Our team meets lawmakers from across the political spectrum of both countries to discover why the Polish and Hungarian governments have taken such different stances. We also explore other key issues, such as the ever-expanding EU files on degradations of rule of law.

Hungarian leader Orban looks increasingly isolated —his pro-Putin stance has cost him most of his allies in the EU; the bloc could end up blocking all funds. And, there are protests at home for the first time in years.

Hungary's far-right ruling party has proposed weakening the European Parliament and the EU's political integration. The passed resolution said democracy in the bloc was at a "dead end."