EU to restore Schengen by end of year

(Baonghean.vn) - The European Commission has just revealed a plan to restore the Schengen open border area by the end of 2016. The agency warned that failure to do so could cause billions of dollars in losses to the economy.

Illustration photo. Source: dpa.

Seven of the 26 countries in the Schengen area currently have emergency border controls in place, including the frontrunner Germany. The European Commission said on March 4 that it wants all of them to lift the controls by December.

Under the Schengen agreement, 26 countries allow passport-free travel without border checks. However, many have reintroduced internal border controls since last September to help stem the massive influx of migrants into Europe, more than at any time in decades.

The absence of internal borders is seen as a major achievement of European integration, improving travel, tourism, trade and supply chains across the bloc, boosting growth.

However, the European Commission’s plan also calls for a new European border and coast guard force to be operational by next summer to protect the bloc’s external borders. Greece, which has been receiving a large number of migrants, is currently receiving additional support to secure its border with Türkiye.

The European Commission has warned that border controls imposed by Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Norway and Sweden could cost the bloc’s economies up to €18 billion ($19.7 billion) due to higher costs for transporting goods by road. Workers will lose time at borders and tourists will find it difficult to travel within Europe, the agency said.

The EU is currently trying to come up with a plan to manage the flow of migrants, mainly from Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq. So far, more than 135,000 people have arrived in Europe - most of them via Greece - after more than 1 million arrived in the bloc in 2015.

The European Commission's statement comes ahead of an EU summit with Türkiye on March 7 aimed at finding ways to deal with migrants trying to cross into the EU via Türkiye.

Thu Giang

(According to Reuters, dpa)