The German Interior Minister, Nancy Feser, has announced the introduction of temporary checks at Germany's borders with Poland and the Czech Republic. The move is intended to curb the flow of migrants and protect the country's interests.

Germany has announced the introduction of “flexible random checks” at its borders with Poland and the Czech Republic to curb human trafficking and control the flow of migrants. The measures are being introduced amid a rise in the number of asylum seekers in the country. Some 204,000 people applied to Germany in the first eight months of 2023, a 77% increase on the same period last year.

Context

It should be noted that this decision was made ahead of the elections in Bavaria and Hesse. German politicians, including Chancellor Olaf Scholz, are trying to demonstrate a tough stance on migration issues in order to attract voters.

As for the Czech Republic, the Ministry of the Interior, Vít Rakušan, has confirmed cooperation with Germany on border control.

Poland is also tightening controls at its borders

Earlier this week, Prime Minister Morawiecki instructed the head of the Interior Ministry and the administration to conduct more thorough checks of buses and cars traveling across the Polish-Slovak border. Recently, the number of people trying to illegally enter Germany through Poland via the so-called “Balkan route” has increased significantly.

The activities of border guards on the border with Lithuania have also been strengthened. The number of patrols carrying out roadside checks of cars, vans, minibuses, and buses has also increased in this section. This is due to an increase in the number of foreign nationals entering Lithuania illegally and then continuing their journey westward through the internal borders of the European Union.