Sweden Introduces Migrant Border Checks

Local Editor

Sweden announced the introduction of temporary border checks to control the flow of migrants into the country.

It said it took the step because a surge in new arrivals had resulted in a threat to public order.

The controls will come into effect from midday local time on Thursday and will last initially for 10 days.

Some 150,000 people have crossed the Mediterranean from African countries this year, but this has been dwarfed by the arrival of some 650,000 people, mostly Syrians, via Turkey and Greece.

Tensions in the EU have been rising because of the pressures faced by those countries where most migrants initially arrive, particularly Greece, Italy and Hungary. Many then head to Germany or Sweden to claim asylum.

Swedish Interior Minister Anders Ygeman said the government had acted "in order to obtain security and stability... not to limit the number of asylum seekers, but to get better control of the flow of asylum seekers to Sweden."

Swedish immigration officials say the action will help them register new arrivals and prevent people from staying in the country illegally.

At a summit in Malta, the EU agreed to set up a €1.8bn [$1.9bn] fund to help Africa tackle "the root causes of irregular migration". The summit was planned after about 800 people died in a migrant boat sinking off Libya in April.

The meeting has been looking at ways to reduce the flow of migrants by helping tackle economic and security problems in African states, and at accelerating repatriation of failed asylum-seekers.

African leaders are insisting on a much clearer path for smaller numbers of their citizens to migrate officially to Europe.

Despite a series of high-level meetings over the migration crisis, the EU remains deeply divided on how to deal with the issue.

Source: News Agency, Edited by website team