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Schengen: Austria extends controls for another 6 months

European Commission confirms it has received notification

11 October, 18:33
(ANSA) - BRUSSELS, OCT. 11 - The European Commission confirmed that it has received an official notification from Austria, ''which intends to continue to maintain the internal border controls with Slovenia and Hungary, until May 2019, then for another six months, according to Article 25 of the Schengen Borders Code, Brussels will now evaluate the notification and will continue to monitor the implementation of controls''. That is what Natasha Bertaud, spokesperson for the EU Migration Commission said today. EC president Jean Claude Juncker said that the Commission is not in favour of this state of affairs which he thinks is a step backwards for Europe. Brussels will continue to work along with the Member States involved, and in particular, encourage them to replace these border controls with police checks in border areas. In order to restore the proper functioning of the Schengen area, according to Bertaud, it is necessary to carry out ''parallel work on strengthening external borders, which can allow free internal movement'', and the European Commission's proposal for a reform of the Schengen Code, ''which is still on the table''. (ANSA).

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