For Militär Aktuell, Patrick Huber met the Burgenland military commander Brigadier Gernot Gasser for an interview about the assistance mission of the Austrian Armed Forces on the Burgenland-Hungarian border. The soldiers have been deployed there continuously for several years in the face of ongoing illegal migration. Fortunately, the situation has recently eased considerably.
Mr. Brigadier, how many soldiers are currently on an assistance mission at the Burgenland border?
We currently have around 270 soldiers stationed on the border with Hungary. In addition, the assistance mission also runs on a smaller scale in Styria, Carinthia and Tyrol with around 80 troops each. The embassy guard in Vienna with around 120 soldiers is also part of the assistance mission.
“The deployment of forces is always based on demand and this demand is derived from the intensity of migration.”
Let’s stay with the 270 members of the Austrian Armed Forces at the border in Burgenland. Is that more or less than in 2024, for example?
We peaked at 750 soldiers around two and a half to three years ago. The deployment of forces is always based on demand and this demand is derived from the intensity of migration.
Does that mean that the pressure in Burgenland has eased considerably due to the illegal mass migration last year?
Yes, in the past two or three years we have had considerable migration flows via Austria, which has resulted in an increased need for personnel.
How is it that the pressure to migrate has eased?
Since October 2023, Serbia has made great efforts to break through the previous smuggling routes. Since then, we have seen a very sharp decline.
Can you give specific figures?
We had almost 21,000 apprehensions of illegal migrants in Burgenland in 2021, in 2022 it was more than 81,200. In 2023 the number then fell to around 30,200 and last year, i.e. 2024, it was only just under 5,200. That is why the number of forces deployed could also be reduced.
“We had almost 21,000 apprehensions of illegal migrants in Burgenland in 2021, in 2022 it was more than 81,200. In 2023 the number then fell to around 30,200 and in 2024 it was only just under 5,200.”
Is an end to the assistance mission against illegal migration in sight?
The end of the deployment is a political decision, as is whether there will be an increase or a further reduction in forces, depending on how migration pressure develops in the future. If migration picks up again, which we hope it won’t, then I assume that we will adjust upwards. If, on the other hand, it continues to fall, we can further reduce the number of staff deployed at the border. After all, we must not forget that these personnel are lacking in other areas – and this at a time when we need to focus more on our core competence, military national defense.
Personnel was a good keyword: What is the ratio of the 270 soldiers on the Burgenland-Hungarian border in terms of conscripts, militia and cadre?
Until 2022, we still had conscripts on duty. At that time, a good 40% of the personnel deployed were conscripts. Currently, around 25 percent of soldiers come from the cadre, the remaining 75 percent from the militia or the “6+3” model.
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