German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Tuesday defended Germany’s border checks. “We naturally wish to protect this Schengen space, however freedom of motion within the Schengen space will solely work in the long run if it isn’t abused by those that promote irregular migration, particularly by smuggling migrants,” he stated.
The inside ministers of Germany and Poland had mentioned the scenario throughout a prolonged cellphone name Monday night, Merz stated in Berlin.
“We’re additionally speaking to the Polish authorities about joint controls within the respective border hinterland,” the chancellor stated.
In response to Polish media studies, Merz stated he wished to make clear that Berlin didn’t push again asylum-seekers who had already arrived. “Some individuals listed below are claiming that there’s, so to talk, common repatriation tourism from Germany to Poland … That’s not the case,” he stated.
The Polish checks would certainly not be an exception within the European free journey space: As of July 1, 11 of the Schengen space’s 29 international locations — together with Austria, France, Germany, Italy and the Netherlands — had notified the European Commission of plans to reintroduce border controls, based on the executive’s record.
That listing doesn’t but embody Belgium, which final month introduced it’d roll out “entry controls” over the summer time with a said intention to halt unlawful migration.
