Poland and Czechia Extend Border Controls with Slovakia Amid Migrant Influx

Poland and Czechia have announced an extension of border controls with Slovakia until November 2, as part of efforts to curb the influx of irregular migrants. These measures were initially coordinated with Austria and planned to remain in place until October 13.

Poland's Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs and Administration, Maciej Wąsik, noted that the situation on the border with Slovakia has become calmer, with fewer dynamic situations. He emphasized that irregular border crossing attempts are not a local but a European problem and that migrants may be waiting for the situation to change or seeking new routes.

However, the decision to extend these border controls was met with mixed reactions. The Prime Minister of Slovakia, Ludovit Odor, expressed the need for a Europe-wide solution to the migrant issue, while pointing out that the number of migrants reaching Slovakia has significantly increased this year, with many coming from Serbia via Hungary en route to wealthier Western European states.

In the Czech Republic, Interior Minister Vit Rakusan reported that police checked a total of 43,749 people and detained 283 illegal migrants who arrived from Slovakia between October 4 and 9. Twelve smugglers have been charged during this period.

Slovakia, which has detected nearly 24,500 illegal migrants from January to August this year, compared to 10,900 for the whole of the previous year, also introduced frontier checks at its border with Hungary on October 5 to address the influx of migrants. These measures are set to remain in place until October 14, with the possibility of further extensions, as the government of Slovakia considers continuing controls until November 3.

By fLEXI tEAM