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EU council gives nod to extending border control in five Schengen countries

Xinhua, February 7, 2017 Adjust font size:

The European Council on Tuesday gave its nod to extending temporary internal border controls in five Schengen countries for another three months, as the bloc is still bearing the brunt of secondary movements of irregular migrants.

In the wake of a European Commission proposal put forward on Oct. 25, the Council announced in statement that starting from Feb. 11, Austria, Germany, Denmark, Sweden and Norway should prolong "proportionate temporary border controls" for a maximum period of three months at certain internal borders.

The temporary border checks -- currently in place at certain borders in the five countries -- was last extended on Nov. 11, 2016 and due to expire on Feb. 11, 2017.

High-ups of the European Union (EU), including EU foreign affairs chief Federica Mogherini, have recently blasted a travel ban signed by U.S. President Donald Trump that bars citizens from Iran, Iraq, Syria, Sudan, Somalia, Libya and Yemen from traveling to the United States for 90 days, stops accepting refugees for 120 days and indefinitely halts refugees from Syria.

Mogherini last week pledged that the EU would not turn its back on anyone who has the right to international protection, because "this is where we stand, this is where we will continue to stand."

But the bloc is on the other hand seeking ways to better control the migrant inflows from North Africa and secondary movements of migrants within the EU.

The Schengen area includes 26 European countries that have abolished passports and any other type of border control at their mutual borders.

However, border checks have become the norm in parts of the Schengen area that saw massive influx of migrants in 2015. Endit