2022.10.28 13:52 (act 10.28.2022 14:02)
Border controls with Slovakia will be extended by 15 days. ©APA/ERNST WEISS
Austria is initially extending border controls with Slovakia by 15 days. It remains to be seen whether they will continue to occur afterwards.
Border controls for Slovakia are extended again. With this step, Austria follows neighboring Czech Republic, which announced on Thursday that it would also extend its identity checks at the border with Slovakia.
Austria extends border controls to Slovakia
Like the Czech Republic, Austria will initially extend controls by 15 days, the Interior Ministry announced in a broadcast on Friday. The controls have been running since September 29 and would otherwise expire on Friday.
The Czech Republic has already announced that it will extend the controls for a further 30 days after the 15 days have expired. The Austrian Interior Ministry has yet to make any announcements in this regard. “Border controls for Slovakia are still necessary, because otherwise criminal smugglers will react immediately and change their routes. We will not allow this dirty business and we will continue to fight the smugglers mafia consistently,” said the interior minister Gerhard Karner (ÖVP).
Twelve smugglers arrested at border controls
During border checks with Slovakia, which have been running since the end of September, the police arrested 12 people smugglers – this year there are more than 500 across Austria. Border controls are being carried out in close coordination with the Slovak Interior Ministries.