“If Italy kept to the rules, then there’d be less migration pressure on the European Union,” the minister said, reacting to comments made by Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, who told public broadcaster Rai1 on Tuesday that Hungary, the Czech Republic and Slovakia gave moral lectures but then failed to help.

Renzi also threatened to veto the EU budget if central European states refused to do their bit in the migrant resettlement scheme.

Szijjártó accused Renzi of “completely failing to understand the situation”, saying that rules guarantee that EU funds go to central European countries.

He added that the accession of these countries into the EU opened up markets to western Europe, including to Italian businesses, from which they are making “serious profits”.

Republished with permission of Hungary Matters, MTI’s daily newsletter.