Poland’s border crackdown undermines EU unity amid Western-Made migration crisis

Department of Research, Studies and International News 08-07-2025

Poland has reintroduced border controls with Germany and Lithuania, in a move that raises serious questions about the internal cohesion of the European Union and the crumbling integrity of the Schengen Agreement. Officially framed as a response to irregular migration and public pressure following far-right protests, the measure, however, reflects deeper fractures within Europe, fractures aggravated by Western hypocrisy, external interference, and selective humanitarianism.

The restrictions enforced from midnight Sunday and set to continue until August 5, are the latest sign of EU states reneging on their commitment to open borders. This development mirrors Germany’s own decision in 2023 to impose random border checks with Poland, despite the Schengen zone’s foundational principle of passport-free travel across member states.

The Polish government, led by Prime Minister Donald Tusk, has deployed hundreds of police officers and soldiers to monitor 52 border crossings with Germany and 13 with Lithuania. Tusk insists that his government supports a “borderless Europe” but paradoxically claims these measures serve the collective interest of the EU. “We are doing this for you, for the Germans, the Dutch, the French,” he stated, portraying Poland as a guardian of European security.

The reality, however, is far more complex. Poland accuses Germany of repatriating migrants into Polish territory, individuals who allegedly never entered Germany through Poland, thus breaching EU asylum protocols. Germany denies these allegations, but tensions continue to mount. Tusk has warned that his country will now examine every case of a person rejected by German authorities and returned to Poland, making clear his dissatisfaction with Berlin’s unilateral actions.

The Polish Interior Minister, Tomasz Siemoniak, defended the border controls as essential for halting what he called “irregular migration” through Poland. While the declared intention is to maintain the measure for 30 days, Siemoniak was quick to note that the policy could be extended if Germany does not abandon its own checks.

He further blamed tightening controls along the Poland-Belarus border for pushing migrant flows toward Poland via Lithuania and Latvia. “We are seeing a significant increase in illegal migrants crossing into Lithuania, Latvia, and then travelling to Poland,” he noted.

While Poland and its Western counterparts obsess over migration management, they fail to acknowledge the root causes, chief among them the wars, instability, and economic disasters unleashed or supported by the very powers now erecting fences. Many of those fleeing to Europe are victims of NATO-led military campaigns and Western economic sanctions, particularly in West Asia, Central Asia, and Africa.

Poland has gone so far as to label the situation a “Russian-Belarusian campaign” aimed at destabilizing the EU by allegedly encouraging the flow of migrants. This is a tired narrative promoted by hawkish elements in the West who seek to scapegoat Moscow and Minsk for Europe’s own failures. Instead of confronting its role in generating these crises, the EU prefers to deflect blame and militarize its borders.

As a show of justification, Polish authorities claim that just before the controls were enforced, border guards arrested an Estonian national attempting to smuggle four individuals, reportedly Afghans, into Poland. Prime Minister Tusk emphasized that the same group had previously tried to enter Poland via Belarus, pointing to the necessity of stricter border enforcement.

In Berlin, the new government led by Friedrich Merz has echoed similar views. His interior minister, Alexander Dobrindt, ordered more stringent border policies earlier this year, allowing for asylum seekers to be turned back at the German-Polish frontier. A summit planned for July 18 will bring regional leaders together to discuss the mounting pressure on the Schengen framework, a sign that European consensus is eroding rapidly.

Still, dissenting voices exist. Knut Abraham, Germany’s commissioner for Polish relations, criticized the move, calling it a “heavy burden” on the border region. “This is not a good day for German-Polish relations,” he admitted, highlighting how domestic political posturing is increasingly undermining neighborly trust.

Despite declarations to the contrary, the tightening of European borders suggests a continent retreating into nationalist policies and fear-based politics. Rather than addressing the root causes of displacement, many of which lie in the foreign interventions and economic domination spearheaded by the United States and its allies, European governments continue to respond with suppression and exclusion.

This is not just about border control. It’s a symptom of a larger geopolitical arrogance that refuses to accept responsibility for the global consequences of Western policy failures. As China, Russia, and Iran push for multipolarity and call for equitable development and sovereignty, Europe finds itself increasingly trapped in a web of contradictions, preaching liberal values while practicing selective compassion.

The question is not whether Schengen will survive the current wave of border controls, but whether Europe can reclaim its sovereignty from U.S.-led agendas and redefine its relationship with the rest of the world based on justice, accountability, and cooperation, not walls and wire.