Sweden launches its own ‘Berlin Wall’ with Denmark as it orders travellers to show ID for the first time in 50 years… while Copenhagen closes borders with Germany
Swedish government introduces ID checks for all travellers from Denmark
Copenhagen reacts by introducing random controls at German border
A temporary fence is erected at Copenhagen airport’s Kastrup station
Measures are desperate attempt to stem migrant influx
Sweden took 160,000 asylum seekers in 2015
Denmark says introduction of checks is sad and ‘extremely annoying’
By GIANLUCA MEZZOFIORE
DailyMail.com
4 January 2016
The Swedish government has re-introduced identity checks and erected its own ‘Berlin Wall’ with Denmark in a desperate bid to ease refugee influx.
The checks, which will go into effect from midnight (2300GMT) on the Danish side of the Oresund bridge-and-tunnel link, will cause several delays and long queues for all people travelling via train, bus and ferry.
A temporary fence has already been erected at Copenhagen airport’s Kastrup station, where trains will be stopped for the mandatory controls, to prevent people from trying to slip across the tracks.
Another fence has been built between domestic and international train tracks at Hyllie train station in southern Malmo, Sweden. The station is the first stop after crossing the Oresund bridge.
Sweden’s decision caused a strong reaction by Denmark, which announced the introduction of random control at the German border.
Danish Prime Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen, who has sought to limit arrivals of migrants on Danish territory, said the controls will initially be in place for 10 days, after which they may be extended.
‘We are simply reacting to a decision made in Sweden. We are introducing temporary border controls but in a balanced way. This is not a happy moment at all,’ Rasmussen said.
‘When other Nordic countries seal their borders it can have major consequences for Denmark,’ he continued, referring to the Swedish measure.
‘It can lead to more asylum seekers,’ he told reporters in Copenhagen.
Earlier, Danish Transport Minister Hans Christian Schmidt said the introduction of checks was sad and ‘extremely annoying’.
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