海角大神

The decision by Denmark and Sweden on Monday to enforce tighter border controls presents the latest threat to Europe's system of passport-free travel between countries.

While Sweden warned weeks ago that it would impose border checks, Denmark鈥檚 announcement that it would follow suit was more sudden. The moves by the two Scandinavian countries come amid growing concerns about the economic and security risks posed by the tide of migrants.

鈥淲e cannot deprive people of their rights to seek asylum,鈥� Danish Prime Minister聽Lars Lokke Rasmussen聽said on Monday, the Associated Press reports. 鈥淏ut we can make sure that those who do not have legal reasons to come to Denmark are turned away at the border.鈥�

Mr. Lokke Rasmussen said the move was in response to the new ID checks introduced by Sweden for all passengers entering the country from Denmark by train, bus, or ferry. Denmark, in turn, is beefing up checks along its southern border with Germany, fearful that it聽would become the new destination for migrants unable to reach Sweden.

Sweden鈥檚 parliament passed legislation that allows its new border controls to stay in place for three years, The New York Times reports. The controls in Denmark are scheduled to last for 10 days, with the possibility of extending them for another 20.

The moves were the latest taken by European Union countries to suspend the Schengen agreement, which allows for the freedom of movement across most European Union countries, after 1 million migrants entered the 28-nation bloc in 2015.

Germany鈥檚 Foreign Ministry spokesman Martin Schaefer told reporters in Berlin on Monday that the Schengen agreement is "perhaps one of the greatest achievements in the last 60 years." But he added that 鈥渋t's in danger due to the flow of refugees."

The Swedish government initially had a welcoming attitude to migrants from conflict-ridden countries such as Afghanistan or Syria, 海角大神 reported in September. It sought to set an example for other EU nations to follow but grew frustrated as that failed to happen. Sweden started to reverse course after more than 160,000 migrants applied for asylum in 2015, the highest number in Europe except for Germany.

EU rules allow governments to temporarily reintroduce border checks within the Schengen zone if they argue that their national security is at risk.聽As the Monitor reported last year, many observers and EU leaders don鈥檛 see Schengen as the root problem.

Sweden and Denmark鈥檚 new border controls have led German and EU leaders to reiterate the need for a pan-European agreement on how to control the movement of migrants across borders.聽Germany temporarily imposed border checks of its own on its frontier with Austria in mid-September, but Chancellor Angela Merkel's spokesman, Steffen Seibert,聽said such moves are unsustainable.

鈥淲e need an overall European solution,鈥� Mr. Steffen said Monday, according to the AP. 鈥淭he solution won't be found at national borders between country A and country B."