Czech citizens can travel freely across almost the whole of Europe without border checks as of today, as the Czech Republic, along with another eight EU newcomers, joined the Schengen area at midnight.
After the entry into NATO in 1999 and into the EU in 2004, this is another significant international event in the Czech Republic’s history, and a breakthrough step on the borders between the states which the Iron Curtain divided into the West and the East before 1989.
Up to now, the Schengen area included 13 old EU countries, (without Britain and Ireland) plus Norway and Iceland. Now it has been joined by all EU newcomers from 2004 except for Cyprus which has applied for its entry’s postponement.
Apart from the Czech Republic, the other Schengen newcomers are Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia.
No border checks are applied inside the Schengen area. Out of the Czech Republic’s four neighbours, Germany and Austria are among the old Schengen members, while Poland and Slovakia are among the fresh members. The Czech Republic is now situated completely inside the Schengen area and checks have been lifted along all its borders.
People celebrated the event at many places along the 2,200-km-long Czech state border.
Mayors of border towns say the lifting of checks will facilitate the exchange of workforce and boost tourism.
On the other hand, the Austrians and Germans living in border areas voice fears of swelling crime. The same fears have been expressed by Czech municipalities situated along the borders with Poland and Slovakia.
The main Czech celebrations will be held in the Czech-Polish-German border area today. Czech and Polish PMs, Mirek Topolanek and Donald Tusk, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and EC President Jose Barroso will attend the event at the border crossings Zittau-Friedenstrasse-Hradek nad Nisou.
