Merkel rules out border controls with France despite rising cases

Berlin (dpa) – Despite the rising number of infections in the French border region of Moselle, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said she did not plan to tighten controls on the border, as is the case with the Czech Republic or the Austrian province of Tyrol.

“Border controls are not on the agenda at the moment,” Merkel said on Thursday after an EU summit that took place by video.

Referring to other border controls, Merkel said this situation was different and that the German states of Bavaria and Saxony, bordering Austria and the Czech Republic, had called for the border controls.

The district of Moselle borders the western German states of Saarland and Rhineland-Palatinate. There has been growing concern about the situation there in recent weeks, due to the spread of new and more transmissible strains of the coronavirus.

Merkel’s comments came as France tightens entry regulations for Germans entering the district.

As of March 1, cross-border commuters who are not travelling for work will have to present a negative PCR test upon arrival that is not older than 72 hours, the French government said in a statement published on Thursday morning.

Health Minister Olivier Veran and Clement Beaune, French secretary of state for European affairs, said that close consultations had been held with the German side in the last days.

“On both sides of the border, we share the goal of maintaining freedom of movement and enabling cross-border workers to pursue their professional activities,” they said in the statement.

Until now, the obligation to present a coronavirus test has generally applied for entry into France, but there were a number of exceptions.

The possibility of remote working was also to be strengthened, according to the statement.