German Border Checks Take Effect as Tensions Over Migration Rise
- Frontier controls extended to all nine land borders on Monday
- Berlin’s move has irritated some of its European Union allies
A temporary extension of border controls to all of Germany’s nine land frontiers takes effect on Monday, part of an enhanced effort to tackle irregular migration and people smuggling that has irritated some of its neighbors.
Germany already had controls on its eastern borders with Poland and the Czech Republic, and those to the south with Switzerland and Austria. They’re now being widened for six months to include Denmark to the north and the Netherlands, Belgium, France and Luxembourg to the west, effectively removing the guarantee of free movement within the European Union set out in the Schengen provisions.