6 January 2015
Bulgaria has agreed to take back more than 3,000 asylum seekers who tried to settle in other EU countries, Bulgarian media report.
In 2013 Bulgaria struggled with a surge of refugees fleeing the Syria war and its reception centres are overcrowded.
Other EU countries have asked Bulgaria to take back nearly 8,000 asylum seekers, Novinite news website reports.
The EU country where migrants first arrive is supposed to handle asylum claims, under controversial EU rules.
Bulgaria and neighbouring Greece have complained that the EU's Dublin II Regulation on asylum claims is unfair. They have urged EU partners to share the burden of asylum claims more equitably, as have Italy and Malta - Mediterranean countries that are also experiencing an influx of migrants.
AFP Bulgaria's new border fence near Golyam Dervent village, topped with razor wire |
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