The Slovenian government has decided to extend its internal border controls with Croatia and Hungary for another 12 days once the current measure ends.
Citing security concerns in the border region, the government said that controls at its internal Schengen border with Croatia and Hungary will remain effective until December 21, 2023.
Slovenia initially introduced border controls with the two countries on October 21, and since then, the country has been continuously extending the measures.
Once the border measures that were introduced on October 21 ended, the government extended them until November 19. Taking into account the situation at its border, Slovenia decided to prolong the measures until December 9, and now the measures will remain effective until December 21.
Due to the high number of irregular entry detections, the Minister of Interior of Slovenia, Boštjan Poklukar, just recently said that the country will extend the internal border controls for a period of six months once the measure ends on December 21.
Back in November, when the last extension took place, the director of the Uniformed Police Administration at the General Police Administration, Marko Gašperlin, said that in line with the rules set out in the Schengen Borders Code, the country could keep restrictions in place for up to two months.
Gašperlin also stressed the critical reasons behind the temporary reintroduction of border controls, saying that targeted border controls at the entry points are being carried out for the sole purpose of protecting the country’s security.
The police are carrying out targeted border control at the entrance, and the concrete reasons are the increased level of threat in the territory of Slovenia and in the region, the emergence of extremism and radicalisation in the countries of the EU.
Gašperlin further said that another reason for extending the border controls is the fear of the potential misuse of the Western Balkan route by migrants who want to enter the territory of the EU irregularly.
In compliance with the principle of proportionality, the temporary border control measures at internal borders will remain targeted and focused on the prevention of terrorism, extremism and cross-border crime.
Currently, several other Schengen Member States have internal border controls in place. Slovakia is the most recent country to announce an extension of its current border measures.
The government of Slovakia said that the country will keep border checks with Hungary in place until January 22. The same explained that the measure is being prolonged in an attempt to halt irregular migration to the bloc.
