Tighter Border Security in Germany in Line With Refugee Law

The introduction of temporary border controls in Germany does not run counter to refugee law and the principle of free movement within the Schengen zone, a spokesman for German Federal Ministry of the Interior told Sputnik.

MOSCOW (Sputnik), Yulia Shamporova – Tighter border security on its frontier with Austria was introduced in Germany on Sunday. This measure was aimed at holding back the thousands of refugees, as the country reached its capacity for processing new arrivals.

“Germany has not closed its borders. We are doing border controls. Germany continues to fully abide by its obligations on refugee law,” Tobias Plate said, explaining that the country’s decision to control its borders does not contradict the principle of openness inherent to the Schengen agreement.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said the decision had been taken for administrative and security reasons. It does not though violate refugee law, according to the Federal Ministry of Interior spokesman.

According to German Vice Chancellor Sigmar Gabriel, up to one million asylum claims are expected to be lodged in the country by the end of 2015, but the capacity of the country to host refugees has already reached its limits.