Slovenia likely to extend border checks

Slovenia is gearing up for another 20-day extension of police checks at its border with Croatia and Hungary once the temporary measure ends on Sunday and is likely to prolong the checks beyond the 20 days unless the situation changes.

The country introduced checks on 21 October after Italy did the same at its border with Slovenia. Both countries listed threats to public order, the situation in the Middle East and Ukraine, and the prevention of terrorism as reasons for the decision.

To extend the checks beyond two months total, the reasoning must change according to Schengen rules.

“If the current situation does not significantly change for the better, we can expect deliberations on this,” Marko Gašperlin, director of the uniformed police at the General Police Administration, told the press on Tuesday as he formally proposed a 20-day extension.

His statement came just before Slovenian and Italian Prime Ministers Robert Golob and Giorgia Meloni met in Rome to discuss migrations. Meloni said Italy and Slovenia were both committed to suspending border controls “as soon as conditions allow”.

Since they introduced the checks, Slovenia has denied entry to 291 foreign nationals who did not have the required documents or overstayed their visas. Some of the individuals posed a threat to public order and the country’s internal security, said Gašperlin, without elaborating further.

(Sebastijan R. Maček | sta.si)

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