The German government extends border controls with Austria by six months. The background is the increased number of refugees via the so-called Balkan route. “Significantly more people are coming to Europe and that worries me,” German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said on Tuesday.
It is important to limit the number of refugees. “We work very closely here,” Faeser said after meeting representatives of the federal states and local authorities. She will meet with the EU’s interior ministers on Friday.
Austria introduces new border controls
At the same time, Faeser announced that more secret identity checks will be carried out in the German-Czech border area. The Austrian and Czech governments have also promised to introduce border controls with Slovakia.
In the Schengen area, which includes 26 European countries, there are in principle no fixed identity checks at the borders. In recent years, however, several countries have made use of an exception and partially reintroduced border controls. In Bavaria, on the border with Austria, there have been checks since the autumn of 2015. Hundreds of thousands of refugees had previously come from Greece to Western Europe via the Balkan route.
Criticism of regulations in Serbia
According to Faeser, visa regulations in Serbia contribute to the current movements. The Serbian government must align its “unacceptable” visa regulations with those of the European Union. In any case, Alexandar Vulin, the interior minister there, has already announced that the rules will be tightened for certain countries. Most recently, people from India and Tunisia mainly came to Serbia.
Source: Krone
I’m Wayne Wickman, a professional journalist and author for Today Times Live. My specialty is covering global news and current events, offering readers a unique perspective on the world’s most pressing issues. I’m passionate about storytelling and helping people stay informed on the goings-on of our planet.
