Serbia's Interior Minister Ivica Dacic has stated that the majority of illegal migrants entering Serbia and North Macedonia come through EU countries. Dacic and North Macedonia's Interior Minister Panche Toshkovski met in Kumanovo to discuss the issue, as reported by Macedonian media and cited by BTA.

Dacic highlighted that more than half of illegal migrants in Serbia enter from Bulgaria, with around 30% coming from Greece. He emphasized that when combined, roughly 80-90% of migrants in the region originate from these two countries. He called on the EU for logistical, organizational, and financial support to address the situation, as reported by TV Channel 5.

Toshkovski mentioned that Greece is the primary source of illegal migrants entering North Macedonia. He expressed gratitude to Frontex for their significant assistance in supporting the border police on North Macedonia's southern border.

The Ministry of Interior of North Macedonia stated that the ministers discussed ways to enhance cooperation between their agencies, including coordination for Serbia’s participation in an upcoming simulation exercise in Ohrid from October 14-17. The exercise will focus on the real-time exchange of information related to migrant smuggling and human trafficking along the Eastern-Mediterranean route.

Additionally, they reviewed the agreement between their governments to establish a joint "one-stop" control at the Tabanovce-Presevo border crossing. The ministers also sought solutions to improve the transit flow for citizens, particularly during the summer when heavy traffic leads to long queues at border crossings.