EU: Tighter Border Controls in Denmark May be Unjustified

Posted July 18th, 2011 at 8:40 pm (UTC-5)
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A European Union team says Denmark has failed to justify tighter security along its borders with Germany and Sweden, and may be impeding free movement across the EU.

Danish authorities imposed the new border controls in May, intending to crack down on smuggling, illegal immigration and human trafficking.

A team of European Commission experts said in a report Monday that there is not a sufficient risk to justify the controls. The team says there have been no clear instructions to border control officers about how to carry out their assignments.

The team says there are persistent concerns that the Danish border controls are incompatible with EU laws and the Schengen treaty, which allow for the free movement of people, goods and services across EU borders.

While the EU team did not ask Denmark to scrap the new border controls, it called on Denmark to clarify why it thinks it needs the increased security.