Border region leader suggests joint German-Polish controls

The leader of the German federal state bordering Poland considers joint border checks by both countries to be sensible.

"The federal government is responsible for securing Germany's external borders. However, I see room for improvement in coordination with the Polish side," Brandenburg Premier Dietmar Woidke told Saturday's edition of the local newspaper Märkische Oderzeitung.

"Additionally, as a former Poland coordinator, I wonder why border checks are not conducted jointly by German and Polish police forces. A signal from the federal government is overdue here," Woidke said.

Poland plans to introduce its own temporary checks at the German-Polish border from Monday in response to German border checks. Germany has been conducting random checks at the border with Poland since October 2023 to stop irregular migration.

German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt ordered more intensive border checks shortly after the new conservative-led coalition government took office in May.

The Polish government anticipates negative impacts on traffic in the region due to the ramped-up controls from Monday. Traffic jams are already occurring on the Polish side because of the German measures.

The Brandenburg premier also holds the federal government responsible for this: Traffic could be eased by creating a third lane for checks in the border area on the A12 motorway, said Woidke.