German border controls: what does this mean for Europe?
Germany began the announced expanded controls at all its borders on Monday. Controls have been in place at the borders with the Czech Republic, Poland and Switzerland since October 2023, and at the border with Austria since 2015. Commentators warn that the crackdown sends a devastating signal, particularly from a pan-European perspective.
Selfish decisions and empty words
European solidarity exists only on paper, Phileleftheros sighs:
“Germany, which has the upper hand as the most powerful country in the European Union, often imposes its own rules without regard for the rules and wishes of other states. Moreover, a tougher line on immigration was to some extent inevitable after the victory of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) in state parliament elections in Thuringia and Saxony on 1 September, and in view of the party's looming victory in Brandenburg this Sunday. ... Germany's decision is proof that the European solidarity that was so heavily promoted a few months ago when the new Immigration and Asylum Pact was signed is nothing but empty words.”
The Migration Pact won't work this way
Schengen could fall apart without a consensus-based migration policy, hvg fears:
“The migration policy of EU countries has countless weak points, and the Migration Pact adopted in the spring, to be introduced in 2026, does not seem to offer a solution. Hungary and Poland did not agree to it in the first place, and since then several countries have indicated that they would like to see changes to it. If the right framework is not put in place and the so-called temporary border controls, which are in fact permanent, continue, the Schengen system will be eroded and the desire for an ever-closer union will fade.”
Making a scapegoat of immigrants
El País observes the developments with concern:
“The moderate parties' adoption of measures from the ultra-conservatives that make immigrants the scapegoat for problems that have nothing to do with them is worrying. ... Germany is not alone in this. ... In France, the Macronists have passed a law so tough that Marine Le Pen celebrated it as her own success. ... The Dutch coalition government, led by right-wing extremists, has announced measures that essentially abandon the EU consensus on asylum. ... The responsibility of the moderate parties is to counter these insidious policies with a discourse based on data, international humanitarian law and the sheer evidence of the wealth - not only material - that immigration brings to the EU.”
Brussels must find a solution
Such measures come at the expense of the states on the EU's external borders, the news website Capital criticises:
“If all the EU's member states do this, the burden will fall on countries of first entry like Greece, Italy and Spain. Poland and Austria have already called on Brussels to intervene. But the German government is in a panic because the three coalition parties performed very poorly in the two federal states that recently held elections. If Brussels doesn't immediately come up with a comprehensive solution for the migration problem, the EU border countries risk being left alone with a huge problem that they can't solve on their own.”
The internal doors must remain open
The business daily Les Echos stresses the crucial importance of open borders between EU member states:
“It's also about symbolism. For Europeans, the most tangible signs of a shared home are the euro, the Erasmus programme and borders that are easy to cross. We need to guard the entrance to the house more effectively, manage refugees better and find solutions for rejected asylum seekers. Inside the house, however, the doors must remain open and exceptions must remain isolated cases. Otherwise the entire European project is in danger of falling apart.”
Goodbye to value-driven foreign policy!
This is a huge loss for Europe, the taz complains:
“The message from Germany is: every man for himself. European solidarity? Think again. ... With this move the traffic light coalition - which was formed as a 'coalition of progress' - is advancing the shift to the right in Europe. In particular since isolation from the outside world goes hand in hand with repression at home in a wide range of areas - against climate activists, critical professors or pro-Palestinian groups, for example. At the same time there is a growing willingness to negotiate with the Taliban or Syria's dictator Assad to facilitate deportations. There can be no more talk of a value-driven foreign policy.”