2023-10-12 14:18:11
The border controls with Slovakia, which have been running since October 4th, will be extended in consultation with Poland and the Czech Republic. The Interior Ministry counted over 500 arrests this year.
Border controls with Slovakia will be extended for another 20 days. Interior Minister Gerhard Karner (ÖVP) announced this in a press conference on Thursday afternoon. The department head referred to corresponding discussions with his counterparts in the Czech Republic and Poland.
The border controls initially began on October 4th and were initially limited to ten days. The argument was that smuggler routes should be prevented.
The step is being taken in close coordination with the Czech Republic, which, together with Poland, has extended border controls with Slovakia, as well as in coordination with the Slovak security authorities. The measure against smuggling crime was originally supposed to end on Saturday, but will now remain in place until November 2nd.
Crossing the “green border” is not permitted
The police will continue to control the eleven official border crossings with the neighboring country until the beginning of November. During this time, crossing the “green border” is not permitted. According to the Interior Ministry, the checks at the border crossings are carried out specifically against criminal smugglers and are intended to disrupt commuter traffic as little as possible. At the same time, the border area is also being increasingly monitored. “The police must be faster than the criminal traffickers who immediately change their routes when their business is disrupted. To ensure that there are no evasive movements via Austria, we are maintaining border point controls. The more than 500 arrests this year alone show that the police are consistently fighting smuggling crime,” said Interior Minister Karner.
Criticism came from the Neos. The fact that the Interior Minister has now coordinated with his Czech and Polish counterparts is by no means sufficient as a reason for extending the controls, criticized the deputy Neos club chairman Niki Scherak. “It is simply not possible for individual member states, including Austria, to keep closing their borders – and then permanently extending these border closures.”
“Good results and clear impacts” in Poland
According to the dpa, Poland and the Czech Republic are also extending their temporary controls on the border with Slovakia until the beginning of November in the fight against smuggling crime. In Prague, the liberal-conservative cabinet approved a corresponding regulation on Wednesday evening. This is following the decisions made in neighboring countries, it was said in Prague. Cross-border traffic should be hindered as little as possible. “There are good results and clear impacts. There will be no illegal migration routes through Poland,” Poland’s Interior Minister Mariusz Kaminski said on Thursday, justifying his decision. Slovakia continues to carry out random checks at the border with Hungary. All four states belong to the Schengen area, in which there should actually no longer be any border controls.
Since the stricter controls on Slovakia began on October 4th, the Czech police say they have checked 43,749 people. 283 migrants entering illegally were apprehended and twelve smugglers were arrested. According to Poland’s Interior Minister Kaminski, around 550 migrants arriving irregularly have been caught at the Polish-Slovak border since controls began. (APA)
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