ADAC on border controls: Stress test at the start of the vacations

In view of the temporary controls at Poland's border with Germany, the ADAC expects traffic jams for vacation travelers in the future. The start of the vacations in Berlin, Brandenburg and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania will be a "yardstick", said an ADAC spokesperson.

The summer vacation begins in the three states at the end of July. In Saxony, which shares a border with Poland, they began a few days ago. The ADAC spokesperson said in the morning that traffic disruptions are currently manageable.

Also checks at the border with Lithuania

Since midnight, random checks have been carried out on travelers at the 52 crossings along the German-Polish border. There are also checks at the 13 crossings to the Baltic state of Lithuania. According to the authorities, the Polish border guards apprehended an Estonian citizen there shortly after midnight. According to the information, he had four people from Afghanistan in his car who wanted to enter the country irregularly. The controls will initially continue until 5 August.

The center-left government in Warsaw ordered the controls in response to German border controls. Germany has been carrying out random checks at the border with Poland since October 2023 to stop irregular migration.

Federal Minister of the Interior Alexander Dobrindt (CSU) had ordered more intensive border controls shortly after the new federal government took office in May. At the same time, he ordered that asylum seekers could also be turned back at the border in future. The rejections from Germany are a controversial topic in Poland.