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Berlin – Controls at the German borders with the Czech Republic, Austria, Poland, and Switzerland will remain as long as necessary, according to German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser, and possibly even after December 15, when they are currently planned to end. Reuters reported Faeser’s statement today. DPA earlier reported the opinion of Bavarian Interior Minister Joachim Herrmann, who believes that stationary controls at Germany’s borders with neighboring countries are still necessary.
Faeser expressed the conviction that the controls are highly successful in combating smugglers and illegal migration. They will likely remain in place until a new European Union asylum system starts functioning, which is not expected until 2026. Germany has been conducting border controls with Austria since 2015 to limit illegal migration and extended this protection to the borders with the Czech Republic, Poland, and Switzerland last fall.
Politicians from the Green Party addressed an open letter to the European Commission criticizing the internal border controls, according to DPA. They argue that Germany is not currently acting in accordance with the Schengen Border Code. The Greens claim that stationary controls burden people and businesses in border regions, as well as the police. Moreover, a new professional report allegedly shows that border controls have failed to achieve their intended effect, and reports of their successes are highly questionable and often not statistically substantiated.
Bavarian Minister Herrmann rejects the criticisms. He claims that border controls between Bavaria and Austria and the Czech Republic are very effective when combined with thorough so-called veil searches carried out by plainclothes police officers in border areas. “This creates a dense control network. Our significantly strengthened Bavarian border police closely coordinate with the federal police, who also conduct border and border area controls,” Herrmann asserts. (August 13)