MIGRANTS settled in eastern Europe under an EU scheme have complained that their new home is not a "dream destination", sparking fears of an exodus to wealthier parts of the continent - including the UK.
Latvia, which has a population of roughly two million, is gearing up to accept hundreds of refugees as part of a quota agreed by diplomats in Brussels.
But those who have arrived in the tiny Baltic state say the cold weather, lack of generous state handouts and relatively low number of fellow migrants who speak the same language have combined to make their experience of life in Europe thoroughly miserable.
One refugee worker told German newspaper Die Welt: "The refugees from southern countries tell us openly: Latvia is not our dream destination, we happened here, it was up to the smugglers."
Many of those who made the perilous journey from war-ravaged parts of Africa and the Middle East say they have witnessed a backlash against them since the attacks in Paris.
Latvian MEP Artis Pabriks said her country was not "opposed" to the reception of refugees, but plans are underway to build a huge barbed fence along its border with Russia to stop illegal immigrants from gaining entry.
Colonel Marik Petrusins, a senior border patrol officer and co-chair of the Russian-Latvian working group on border issues, said: "This 276 km [170 miles] long border was very quiet until 2013."Read the rest of the story HERE.
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