More and more asylum seekers – border guards at the Brenner Pass get a new base

The Brenner border is actually history, but many tasks are still central there: “It is about illegal migration, transit or cross-border searches”, LH Günther Platter gave a few examples. He was assisted by Secretary of the Interior Gerhard Karner. Together they visited the construction site of the old customs building, which is being converted into a border management center for 6.8 million euros. Commissioning: early 2024. Previously, officials assigned this task had to settle for a container solution.

Fight against tugs centrally
Minister Karner mentioned acting against international smugglers as the most important task. “In Austria, we caught about 350 people smugglers in the first seven months and the number of asylum applications has doubled.” The focus is on the Balkan route, but more and more can be expected in the west as well. Yet Platter and Karner did not want to make a comparison with the explosive refugee year 2015.

Police and state move in
15 police officers will use the building as a base for manhunts and for registering detainees, but also for cross-border police operations with Italy and meetings within the framework of the Euregio. 90 percent of the building on the border is used by the police, the rest by the country. Housing association Tigewosi is responsible for the construction. Boss Franz Mariacher spoke of a challenging project: “It was necessary to clarify what can still be used in the future. Among other things, part of the ceilings had to be removed.”