Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis said on Sunday that the Czech Republic will not meet the request of Italy and will not accept any refugees from the group of 450 that got stuck in a fisherman's boat.

Babis said the reception of illegal migrants only makes the problem worse. He insisted that the admission of migrants must be based on the principle of voluntary decision-making.

"Our country will not accept any migrants. We have pushed through the voluntary decision principle for relocation in the European Council and will stick to this," Babis was quoted as saying.

Czech Interior Minister and Foreign Minister Jan Hamacek confirmed that Prague would reject the Italian request to accept migrants. He said the Czech Republic could help Italy in another way by offering experts and police officers.

According to him, the Czech Republic is ready to participate in an operation in northern Libya in support of Libyan security forces under Italian command.

Hamacek said the migration crisis could not be resolved by letting the door to Europe remain open to uncontrolled migration.

Approximately 450 people were on board a fisherman's boat, from where they were taken over by the EU agency Frontex and the Italian financial guards. Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte then turned to the EU asking its help to solve the situation. At his request, Malta, France and Germany have so far reacted, promising to accept 50 people each.

Babis does not agree with this approach. He said the EU must send out a clear signal that illegal migration has ended and the EU will return all illegal migrants immediately, noting that the EU must help migrants in the countries from which they are coming, outside the European border to prevent them from setting out for a journey at all.