The police of the Czech Republic have reported on their official website that they are set to reintroduce border checks along the entire border with Slovakia as of midnight on Wednesday, namely at 17 road crossing points, seven rail ones and three river ones. It won't be possible to cross the border at any other point than the 27 designated crossings, at least for the next ten days. Exemptions will apply to farmers operating in the immediate proximity of the border, along with foresters, hunters and fishermen. The move was announced on Monday by Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala, who cited growing illegal migration as the reason. According to chief of the Czech Foreign Police Milan Majer, Czech police officers have detained a total of 11,983 illegal migrants in transit in their country this year, which is notably more than in 2015, when the migration crisis in Europe was at its peak. Slovakia has reacted to the Czech Republic's decision. The renewal of border controls needs to be negotiated at the EU level and Slovakia will strive to do so, said Interior Ministry spokeswoman Zuzana Eliášová adding that the Ministry respects this step. In this context, the ministry noted that the Czech Republic's move also has implications for other countries. "The existence of the Schengen area plays an important role in the issue of migrants. The fact is that Slovakia, the Czech Republic and other European countries are suffering from so-called secondary migration - people arriving do not want to stay in these countries, they are just a migration route for them," the spokeswoman said.
Source: TASR
