People take a military aircraft of Germany to leave Kabul, Afghanistan, Aug. 24, 2021.(Photo: Xinhua)

 

Photo taken on Aug. 16, 2021 shows people gathering at the Kabul airport in Kabul, Afghanistan.(Photo: Xinhua)

 

People queue up to board a military aircraft of Germany and leave Kabul at Kabul airport, Afghanistan, Aug. 24, 2021. (Photo: Xinhua)

 
The Czech Republic, Slovakia and Austria are against illegal migration and do not want the situation in 2015 when refugees streamed to Europe to repeat, local media reported on Tuesday.

Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis, Slovak Prime Minister Eduard Heger and Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz made the remarks at a press conference after their meeting in the Slavkov format in Lednice of the Czech Republic.

When commenting on the developments in Afghanistan, Babis said the three leaders shared the opinion on the fight against people smugglers. Afghans must be helped in their homeland. "There is really no more space for them in Europe," he said.

"Nevertheless, we cannot allow the year 2015 to repeat. We are against illegal migration," Czech News Agency quoted Kurz as saying.

Besides the current situation in Afghanistan and the resulting security risks, including the threat of migration, the leaders of the three countries also discussed EU's economic recovery and the development of the COVID-19 pandemic, with the main emphasis on vaccination, according to a release from the Czech government.

The Slavkov format of cooperation among the three countries was created in January 2015 as a complement to neighborly relations in Central Europe and is one of the basic pillars of the Czech Republic's regional cooperation with its neighbors.

The last Slavkov format meeting at the prime minister level took place in September 2020 in Vienna, Austria. The Czech Republic took over the presidency of the format from Austria on July 1, 2021.