Uelzen police strengthen borders: New controls against migration!

Uelzen police strengthen borders: New controls against migration!

In recent weeks, the strengthening of border controls at the German borders has caused a stir. The federal police in Uelzen have increased their operations in response to the federal government's new migration policy. As part of this policy, which was implemented by the new red-black government, the CDU set the clear goal of reducing illegal entries into Germany during the election campaign. But what is the real status of rejections at the borders?

As az-online.de reports, the Berlin administrative court has, in an expedited procedure, classified the procedure of turning back migrants at the border if they are already registered as refugees in another country as illegal. Nevertheless, the stricter regime remains in place. David Wörmeyer, head of the situation department in the Uelzen Federal Police, reports a significant increase in the number of personnel deployed at the borders. However, more precise figures remain under wraps for tactical reasons.

Border controls and their effects

The federal police are not only on duty in Uelzen. As part of the new migration policy, controls were expanded at all German land borders, especially at the Bavarian-Czech border, where an additional 3,000 federal police officers are on duty. In the first week after the change of government, officials turned back 739 people at the border. The numbers rose in the second week with 1,676 rejections, including 123 asylum seekers, with 87 applications rejected. This emerges from the reports of ZDF.

But it is questionable whether the measures actually have the intended effect. According to migration experts who have collected data over the years, the figures from Mediendienst-Integration show that it is not possible to establish a direct connection between border controls and the development of refugee numbers. For example, the number of unauthorized border crossings into Germany fell by 36% to around 83,000 people in 2024 - a pleasing decline. However, it remains uncertain how much influence current political decisions actually have on migration flows.

Economic costs of controls

There are also the economic aspects of these measures. From September to December 2024, the cost of border controls amounted to 27.6 million euros. Political decision-makers also have to face the possible economic costs of up to 1.1 billion euros that could be caused by disruptions in the movement of goods. However, the assessment of the effects of these controls remains manageable, as ZDF adds.

Positive news for migrants: The number of asylum applications is already showing a decline. In 2023, over 350,000 applications were submitted, while in 2024 there were around 250,000. The forecasts for 2025 suggest around 160,000 applications. The Uelzen Federal Police also plans to increase its personnel capacity to over 700 employees in order to meet the requirements of border control.

Overall, migration policy remains a hotly debated topic. The developments surrounding border controls are closely linked to geopolitical factors and changes in other target countries. The effectiveness of these measures in practice will become clearer in the coming months.