Warsaw continues to harden his fight against irregular migration. Poland has extended temporary controls at its borders with two other European Union countries: Germany and Lithuania, Polish Minister Marcin Kierwinski announced on Sunday.
“The appropriate regulations were adopted and sent to the European Commission for notification on Friday,” said Marcin Kierwinski at a meeting with regional governors. He said the checks, reintroduced last month after Germany, took similar measures to stop migrants in an irregular situation, would be extended until October 4.
A border with Russia and Belarus
The Minister said that the strengthening of controls and barriers on the Polish border with Russia and Belarus had made it possible to put an end to clandestine crossings. He estimated that it was now “fundamental” to lock the migratory road which formed through Latvia, Lithuania then Poland to Germany.
More than 493,000 people crossing the borders separating Poland from Germany and Lithuania were controlled by the Polish border guards between July 7 and August 2, their leader, Robert Bagan, said during the meeting. The Polish authorities say that hundreds of people, mainly from the Middle East, have crossed Baltic States from Belarus every month.
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European countries that are part of the Schengen area can establish border controls if they believe that there is a threat to public order or internal security.