Border checks will destroy Schengen, says Interior Minister

Slovakia is against certain EU-member states introducing controls at internal borders of the Schengen area without adequate reasons, stated Interior Minister Robert Kaliňák (Smer-SD) on Tuesday at a conference marking the 10th anniversary of Slovakia's accession to the Schengen area. Kaliňák sees checks at internal borders as a threat to Schengen itself. He added that the introduction of border controls by several EU-member states has become a political matter. "It has no effective justification, as the green border is still free, so it's just some political symbol stating that we're at the borders and that we're guarding them. I think that's a bad decision, as it's a way backwards, a way to ruin Schengen," said Kaliňák. As a result, Slovakia is against introducing internal controls without adequate reasons, stated Kaliňák.