Sweden, Norway extend border controls by 6 months

Sweden will continue with border controls for another six months, the government said in a statement on Wednesday.

Swedish public television broadcaster SVT reported the extension applies to border controls at harbors on the south and west coasts, as well as at the Oresund Bridge and Hyllie train station, which share a border with Denmark.

On May 2, the European Commission, or the executive body of the European Union, proposed that Sweden continue with inner border controls.

"The Commission bases its recommendation on the assessment that there still exists a serious threat to public order, domestic security, and the Schengen Area's operations," the government statement read.

A little more than a week ago, the government informed that it was abandoning ID checks between Denmark and Sweden starting on May 4.

Border controls were introduced in response to the refugee crisis in November 2015, when thousands of asylum-seekers entered Sweden each week.

Meanwhile, the Norwegian government said on Wednesday it would extend its internal Schengen border controls by six months until Nov. 11.

Norway will maintain its border controls in ports with ferry arrivals from Sweden, Denmark and Germany, the Norwegian Ministry of Justice and Public Security said in a statement.

"The government believes that the migration situation in Europe makes it necessary to control entry to Norway," Minister of Justice and Public Security Per-Willy Amundsen was quoted as saying.

The border control scheme in Norway has been extended several times, most recently in February this year when it was extended by three months to May 11.

Five Schengen states -- Austria, Germany, Denmark, Sweden and Norway -- have introduced temporary internal border controls in the wake of the refugee crisis since 2015.

Early this month, the European Commission requested the five countries to dispense with the systematic border checks within six months.