Germany announced on Wednesday, September 27, its intention to enhance border enforcement along its borders with Poland and the Czech Republic, aiming to better manage the increasing incidents of illegal migration.

Germany said Wednesday it would step up policing of its borders with Poland and the Czech Republic, in a bid to get a grip on rising levels of illegal migration

The surge in arrivals has reignited the immigration debate in Germany, put pressure on Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s government and caused tensions with European neighbors facing their own influx.

Germany has already increased the number of police carrying out search operations in the border area in recent months, as numbers began to rise.

Between January and August this year, federal police detected 70,753 irregular entries into Germany, a nearly 60-percent increase on the same period last year.

The number of requests for asylum also rose by around 77 percent, with over 204,000 applications made, according to the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees.

Recently the possibility of implementing fixed controls along the border with Poland and the Czech Republic was raised, a measure already in place along the boundary between Germany and Austria.

All are members of the European Union and of Europe’s Schengen open-borders zone.

The reintroduction of border checks in the Schengen Area is permitted only in exceptional circumstances and must be notified with Brussels before it can be implemented.

Immigration will be at the top of the agenda for the talks, as member states wrangle over who has responsibility for new arrivals and how to better insulate the EU’s borders.

The issue has been driven in particular by Italy, which has seen a surge in the number of people arriving on boats from North Africa.

The relationship between Germany and Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s government has frayed over the issue.

Rome has denounced Germany for its support for migrant charities helping rescue those attempting the crossing. Berlin has likewise suspended an agreement to take migrants from Italy.

In Germany, the rising number of arrivals has brought back memories of the 2015 migrant crisis, when tens of thousands of people streamed into the country.

On Sunday, Michael Kretschmer, the leader of Saxony, one of Germany’s federal states, called for an immediate response, including the implementation of fixed controls.

Khalil Wakim, with AFP