migration
Faeser extends border controls until December 15th
Federal police officers check vehicles at a border crossing between Germany and Poland. photo
© Frank Hammerschmidt/dpa
Since mid-October, the federal police have been checking cross-border commuters between Germany and several neighboring countries. “These measures are working,” says Interior Minister Faeser – and is extending them.
Federal Minister of the Interior Nancy Faeser (SPD) extends border controls with Poland, the Czech Republic and Switzerland until December 15th. This should be reported to the Brussels EU Commission shortly, said a spokesman in Berlin. It is assumed that controls should continue, particularly at the German-Polish border.
Border controls are not actually planned within the Schengen area and must be reported to Brussels. On October 16, Faeser instructed the federal police to carry out stationary checks on the border with Poland, the Czech Republic and Switzerland, as has been the case on the land border with Austria since 2015.
Since October 16, around 3,300 unauthorized entries have been detected at the border with Poland and 1,100 unauthorized entries have been prevented, the spokesman said. “That means these measures are working and they should be continued now.” If someone is caught at the border and makes it clear that they want to apply for asylum, they are usually allowed to enter.
The aim of the controls as a whole is to “put a stop to the increasingly unscrupulous and brutal smuggling crime,” said the spokesman. More than 30 smugglers have recently been caught on the German-Polish border. At the same time, from Faeser’s point of view, it is important that the negotiations on the common European asylum system move forward.