The European Commission on Thursday stepped up a legal battle with Hungary over EU migration rules and denounced as illegal its "Stop Soros" law, which criminalises support for asylum seekers. The move will further sour Brussels’s relations with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who has been one of the strongest opponents of EU decisions for greater co-operation among member states to handle the migration crisis. The EU executive said in a statement that it had referred Hungary to the EU Court of Justice "for noncompliance of its asylum and return legislation with EU law". Two EU legal requests went unheeded. This is the third step of a legal procedure that could ultimately lead to financial sanctions on Budapest if the court confirms the commission’s line. Brussels says the Hungarian authorities have failed to provide effective access to asylum procedures for migrants. Asylum seekers are also held in "transit centres" for more than the maximum stay of four weeks allowed under ...

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