Luxembourg hopes Poland will join complaint against German border controls
Luxembourg is hoping that Poland will join its complaint against Germany's reinstatement of border controls, filed amid concerns it could undermine the principle of free movement within the Schengen area, Luxembourg's Interior Minister Leon Gloden has told PAP.
Germany reinstated controls at the internal borders of the Schengen Area in September 2024 to stem the flow of migrants, citing an overwhelmed asylum system and a high number of irregular entries. Although the Schengen Borders Code only allows countries to reintroduce controls for six months, in practice many countries, including Germany, routinely extend them.
Gloden told PAP that Luxembourg had filed a complaint regarding Germany's border controls with the European Commission (EC) in February.
He said that no one had expected one of the smallest countries in the EU to challenge Germany by filing a complaint; however, following this action, Luxembourg received favourable responses from numerous countries, including Poland, which face similar issues.
He also said that the Luxembourgian government-run email service was inundated with complaints from people crossing the border daily, as travel times had increased from an average of two hours to four.
Gloden expressed his hope that Poland, which is also very dissatisfied with the German border checks, would consider taking the same step and file a compliant with the EC to support his country in addressing the border control issue.
The Schengen Agreement, which established freedom of movement in Europe, was signed on June 14, 1985, in a village in Luxembourg located at the tripoint where the borders of Luxembourg, Germany and France meet. This agreement gradually removed controls at internal borders and allowed for freedom of movement for citizens of the signatory countries and other EU member states.
Recently, Luxembourg marked the 40th anniversary of the Schengen Agreement, reaffirming its commitment to free movement within Europe. Gloden hosted the anniversary events which were attended by EU interior ministers, including Poland's Tomasz Siemoniak. (PAP)
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