Germany will bring in controls on all its land borders to deal with the ‘continuing burden’ of migration and ‘Islamist terrorism’, the country’s interior minister has told the EU.
Nancy Faeser of the struggling Social Democrat party (SPD) has finally accepted that Germany has no choice but to enforce proper border controls if it has any hope of coping with the staggering amount of unauthorised entries.
According to German newspaper Bild, the new rules will see ‘harsh rejections of migrants at the borders’.
Faeser has reportedly already informed the EU Commission of the decision, which is fuelled by deep-rooted panic over Germany’s current migrant situation and internal security threats.
It marks, however, a U-turn from her stance just last month when she refused to extend strict controls first introduced last year on Germany’s borders with Poland, the Czech Republic and Switzerland.
People hold banners that read ‘Direct democracy’ and ‘No to mass immigration, yes to remigration’ as far-right protesters march through the streets of Solingen
Nancy Faeser of the struggling Social Democrat party (SPD) is to enforce temporary border controls at all national land borders
Far-right protesters hold a banner reading ‘remigration now’ as they march through the streets of Solingen, following a stabbing rampage, on August 26
This policy has already seen more than 30,000 people turned back at the borders since mid-October last year amid concerns over the rise in first-time asylum requests.
Now the rules will be applied across the length of Germany’s 2,300-mile land border with Denmark, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, France, Switzerland, Austria, the Czech Republic and Poland.
The latest action comes shortly after an ’emergency’ migration meeting between the conservative CDU/CSU parliamentary group and regional representatives, where discussions focused on tightening immigration policies.
Austria, however has not welcomed the development, saying it would not accept any migrants turned away at the border.
‘There’s no room for manoeuvre there,’ Austria’s Foreign Minister Gerhard Karner told Bild.
‘It’s the law. I have directed the Head of the federal police to not allow any returns,’ he added.
A far right supporter with a shirt of the right-wing extremist minor party, The Third Path (Der Dritte Weg) attends a protest, in Solingen on August 26
Teenage girls draped in German flags attend an election campaign rally of the right-wing Alternative for Germany on May 28
Concerns about immigration have already been pushed to the forefront of German politics, heightened by a series of attacks carried out by Islamists, most recently in Solingen.
The German government has also been facing increased pressure to respond to migration as support for right-wing party, the AfD has rapidly gathered pace.
And at the end of last month Germany’s police union announced that Schengen was making Germany’s security crisis even worse and must be abandoned immediately.
Manuel Ostermann, deputy federal chairman of the Federal Police Union, has launched a fierce condemnation of Schengen, the EU’s hair-brained border-free scheme, in an interview with Focus magazine.
‘The crisis in Germany’s security is a direct consequence of Schengen’s ineffective policies. Schengen’s inability to manage migration effectively has put Germany’s safety at stake.’
‘Germany must realize the current failure of Schengen and either make a concerted effort to return to the current legal situation or terminate Schengen,’
Here he pointed to the rising crime rates in Germany, exacerbated by the migration crisis, as proof that Schengen is no longer viable.
Germany Chancellor Olaf Scholz visits the scene of the knife attack on August 26
He said Schengen’s open borders have made it easier for criminals to operate across Europe, impacting Germany’s safety.
‘Schengen has failed to protect Germany from the influx of criminals, necessitating immediate action.’
‘We must continue to notify our internal borders because border controls, whose effectiveness has been proven, are no longer maintained under Schengen.
‘The failure of Schengen is evident in the increased crime rates, making it clear that changes are needed.’
