Germany’s Interior Minister Nancy Faeser on Thursday called for a halt to illegal migration through the Balkan route.

“European authorities have a joint responsibility to stop illegal migration so that we can continue to help people who urgently need our support,” Faeser said before taking part in a conference in Berlin with representatives of Balkan countries.

The minister pointed out that more and more people are arriving in Europe via the Mediterranean and the Balkan route. Meanwhile, she pointed out that Germany has taken in more than one million refugees from Ukraine since the war began on February 24.

This Thursday, a set of measures will be discussed in order to curb migration through the afore-mentioned route, including adapting a visa policy for the Balkan countries in line with EU standards, combating smuggling and ensuring effective border protection.

In addition, Faeser has called for a discussion of the procedures for returning people who, in his opinion, “do not have the right to stay”.

However, experts such as Gerald Knaus, migration researcher and co-founder of the think tank European Stability Initiative have criticized such attempts at migration policy.

“Closing the Balkan route has never worked. Nowadays the pressure is not created by illegal migration, but by legal migration, as nine out of ten refugees come from Ukraine,” he explained.