European Union migrant: German Chancellor Angela Merkel and President of the

Greece, Italy and Hungary are too overwhelmed to participate.

‘We need a binding agreement on the binding distribution of refugees according to fair criteria between member states, ‘ Mrs Merkel told the German parliament. Authorities have announced that almost 40,000 migrants are expected by next week. It will not. But pushing back boats from piers, setting fire to refugee camps, or turning a blind eye to poor and helpless people: “that is not Europe”, he said.

The speech was delivered as thousands continued a land trek through an overburdened Greece, across the Balkans, and into Hungary, which is building a 110-mile fence on its border with Serbia to try to keep migrants out. Tens of thousands are attempting to get to Germany and Sweden, countries that have vowed to welcome migrants.

Despite the urgency, the EU’s first refugee plan never won full support, and only around 32,000 refugees have been allocated.

In the past two days, Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff pledged to welcome Syrian refugees with “open arms”, Chile´s Michelle Bachelet declared her country´s “doors (are) open”, and Panama´s Juan Carlos Varela said his nation had a “big heart” and would gladly take in fleeing Syrians and Iraqis. “This has to be done in a compulsory way,” he said. Canada’s Quebec province has also said it will take 3,650 this year and Washington has said it is examining how it could provide more help.

Meanwhile, European Commission proposals for a unified EU response to an influx of migrants include several positive points but Slovakia still opposes mandatory migrant quotas, Prime Minister Robert Fico said on Wednesday.

Juncker said the refugee crisis was his top priority, ahead of the economy, Greece’s debt woes, Ukraine, climate change and a looming vote on Britain’s membership of the bloc.

Mr Juncker’s proposals will be discussed at a special meeting of European Union interior ministers next Monday.

“The European Union must show Russian Federation the cost of confrontation but it must also make clear it is prepared to engage”.

In the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France, Juncker said that now is the time for action because “the refugee crisis will not simply go away”.

They come to Europe not “because they seek safety but because they want a better life than in a camp”.

At the weekend, Austria allowed some 15,000 to enter the country freely to help relieve a near-explosive situation in Hungary where 50,000 migrants arrived in August alone. The “safe country” tag is likely to mean that few asylum applications by nationals from those countries will succeed.