Denmark’s Justice Ministry has announced a new six-month extension of temporary controls on the country’s border with Germany.
The Danish government has again decided to extend its temporary controls on the Schengen border with Germany by six months, the Ministry of Justice said in a statement on Wednesday.
The new extension will take Denmark’s border controls into a second decade, given they were first introduced at the beginning of 2016.
The current extension remains necessary due to the risk from cross border crime, Justice Minister Peter Hummelgaard said in the statement.
“Denmark remains in a serious security situation. This tells me that the most responsible thing to do is still to consider who we allow to cross our borders, so that we can protect the Danish people,” Hummelgaard said.
“‘The government has therefore decided to extend the temporary border controls with Germany, giving the police the resources they need in the fight against terrorism and cross-border crime,” he added.
The Danish controls mean that travellers entering Denmark from Germany can be stopped and checked to ensure they have the right to stay in the country. Not all travellers are stopped at the border.
Police in the South Jutland Danish border region have meanwhile purchased a drone to support daily operations including patrolling at the border, news wire Ritzau reports.
Although technically a temporary measure, the Danish border controls have been extended many times and have been in place in some form since 2016.
Although Denmark’s border controls have been continually extended, they were relaxed in May 2023.
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The relaxed rules mean that fewer motorists are now stopped for checks at the border when entering Denmark from Germany, compared to early 2023 and before. Instead, border controls are made in line with police assessments on where they are most needed.
Under the rules of the Schengen agreement, countries can place temporary border controls under exceptional circumstances. After a six-month period, the temporary checks must be renewed.
Denmark initially introduced border checks with Germany in early 2016, citing the refugee crisis of late 2015 as justification. It later referred to a more general “security and migration situation” as cause for continually extending the controls, pointing to what it said was a threat of organised crime and terrorism.
Germany also has its own border control measures in place with neighbouring EU and Schengen countries including Denmark.
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