The border controls reinstated by the centre-left Polish government, who fell for the pressure of ultraright groups, has led to loads of annoyed motorists at the Polish borders. For example, on Friday, traffic jams up to 12 kilometres (7.5 miles) were reported on the Lithuanian side of the border.
Lithuanian police reacted by rerouting many motorists away from the main road to alternative border crossing, to lift the pressure on the main entrance into Poland. The Polish government officially says it wants to stop illegal immigration, but so far it looks like the measurement is an overreaction to policital pressure.
Only 24 people denied entry
German media reported that out of the first 67,000 people checked on the Polish-German border, only 24 were denied entry by the Polish authorities in the week of 7 to 13 July. 28,500 vehicles were stopped.
Number of Polish border crossings
Poland has 52 border crossings with Germany, 13 with Lithuania, a dozen or more with Slovakia and Czechia and a long border with Belarus and Ukraine. The border with Belarus is closed since Belarus supports Russia with its full-scale invasion of Ukraine since February 2022, while with Ukraine the border checks have always been in place – as the country is no member of the European Union. | © 2025 Marcel Burger, nordicreporter.com. Featured photo: A Polish border (Archive photo by Radosław Drożdżewski (CC))