Norway extends internal Schengen border controls until Nov. 11

The Norwegian government said on Friday it would extend its internal Schengen border controls until Nov. 11 after the Council of the European Union agreed last month to extend border controls within the Schengen area for six months.

The controls shall be exercised in accordance with the Council's decision that gives Norway permission to maintain border controls in ports with ferry arrivals from Sweden, Denmark and Germany, the Norwegian Ministry of Justice and Public Security said in a statement.

"I am pleased that the EU agrees that we need to continue border controls. External border control is still not sufficiently safeguarded, and involve many uncertainties about the situation in Europe. We have to have control of our borders until we have found a common European solution," Minister of Justice and Public Security Anders Anundsen was quoted as saying.

"I consider our border controls to be well-tuned measures, and it will not be to the disadvantage of ordinary travelers," he said.

The Council of the European Union, an essential decision-maker of the bloc, said on May 12 that Austria, Germany, Denmark, Sweden and Norway would be allowed to continue their border controls for six months.

However, the five countries are required to ensure that controls are only implemented where "necessary and proportionate," and are taken with an objective to lift all internal border controls and return to a normally functioning Schengen area by the end of 2016.

Norway introduced temporary border checks on Nov. 26 last year after neighboring Sweden announced it would implement measures to reduce the influx of refugees, including border controls and stricter residence and family reunification measures.

The border checks were originally to last 10 days but were extended several times since then.

source : xinhua