Hungary’s prime minister has called for a “united European stance” on migration at the start of a week of intense diplomatic activity.
Viktor Orban urged consensus, saying migrants were “breaking the doors” and “millions” could reach Europe.
Foreign ministers from Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic and Slovakia, who are strongly opposed to obligatory quotas, are meeting in Prague.
Germany and France want migrants shared out more evenly across the EU.
EU interior ministers are to meet on Tuesday, with leaders convening for an extraordinary summit the following day.
A large proportion of those seeking asylum are looking for routes north to Germany.
Thousands more migrants entered Austria over the weekend and more are expected to arrive via Hungary on Monday.
Croatia’s authorities tweeted that 29,000 had entered its territory by early Monday morning.
Further south, Greek police say 8,500 people have left Greece for Macedonia in the last day.
Divisions among European states were illustrated by French President Francois Hollande, who said that in the EU “no-one can be exempt” from taking in people with the right to asylum.
European Council President Donald Tusk said that the EU should help Syrian refugees to “a better life closer to their homes”.
Eastern European countries are stressing the need to protect the EU’s external borders and distinguish between economic migrants and refugees, says the BBC’s Chris Morris in Brussels.
At Monday’s meeting, the eastern European foreign ministers are expected to reaffirm their opposition to mandatory quotas.
Hungary has reopened its border crossings with Serbia, but with strict controls – their closure earlier in the week sent large numbers of migrants into Croatia.
Croatia initially welcomed the migrants, but then said it was unable to cope with the numbers and moved them over its border with Hungary, which quickly ferried them west to Austria.
In the latest developments:
In Greece, Reuters reports that fewer boats carrying migrants have arrived on the island of Lesbos, as a storm is on its way to the Aegean Sea. At least 13 died when a boat capsized near Lesbos at the weekend
In Croatia, some 40 buses arrived at Opatovac camp on the border with Serbia overnight. Eight left on Monday morning, amid indications they were being taken to the Hungarian border
Hungary’s government places advertisements in the Lebanese press urging migrants not to make the journey to Europe. The Doctors Without Borders group also put notices in Lebanese newspapers calling for Europe to open its borders to refugees
Meanwhile Germany’s Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere repeated calls to limit the number of refugees coming into Europe.
He proposed that the EU creates “generous contingents where we take people from crisis regions into Europe without traffickers and distribute them across Europe”.
The largest group arriving in Europe are Syrians escaping the conflict there, followed by Afghans, then migrants from Eritrea, Nigeria and Somalia, fleeing war and human rights abuses.
Many migrants reaching the EU from sub-Saharan Africa or the Western Balkans fail to get asylum, as they are classed as economic migrants.
Migrant crisis in Europe: Recent key dates
13 July: Hungary starts building razor-wire fence on border with Serbia
25 Aug: Germany says all Syrian refugees can apply for asylum there, regardless of which EU country they first entered
2 Sept: Image of body of three-year-old Syrian Alan Kurdi, washed ashore in Turkey, moves public opinion worldwide
12 Sept: Record 4,330 migrants cross into Hungary
13 Sept: In a switch of policy, Germany introduces border controls with Austria; other EU nations later impose their own controls
15 Sept: Hungary enforces tough laws on migrants crossing its border fence, prompting thousands to turn to Croatian route
18 Sept: Croatia transports migrants over its border into Hungary, which ships them on to Austria
19 Sept: Thousands cross into Austria, which prepares to send many on to Germany
BBC
