Dutch mayors escalate clash with Germany over border checks after latest fatal crash
Dutch mayors are sharply increasing pressure on Germany over its border controls with the Netherlands, arguing the measures are causing dangerous congestion, economic damage, and repeated accidents in the border region. The dispute has intensified following a seven-car crash near Babberich in Gelderland on Saturday that killed a 66-year-old man and was linked by officials to traffic backups at a border checkpoint.
Hubert Bruls, mayor of Nijmegen, is leading the criticism and calling for the immediate end of the checks. “The accidents are extremely tragic. It makes the border controls even more bitter,” he told Trouw, also questioning the legality of the German measures under European law. “The question you now really have to ask is whether this is still in line with European law. And if I may believe legal experts, it is not.”
Bruls said he initially accepted Germany’s 2024 decision to introduce temporary checks due to migration pressure and public order concerns but said the situation has changed. “About a year and a half later, the situation is very different,” he said, adding that migration flows have declined while the policy has become “quasi-permanent.”
He also criticized the European Commission for not intervening. “That is my Europe. But the European Commission is not intervening now that a member state is basically taking liberties with European law. I find that quite difficult, also to explain to citizens that they do have to follow the rules.”
Mark Boumans, mayor of Doetinchem, also reacted strongly after the Babberich crash, expressing frustration at what he sees as a lack of effective alternatives from Germany. “I don’t think I need to respond after every accident, because there seems to be no end to it. I am mainly deeply disappointed that the Germans cannot come up with a better solution. It is fine that they want to limit migration, but arrange it in such a way that the side effects are not so enormously harmful,” he told De Stentor.
Beyond safety concerns, local governments report growing disruption from diversion traffic through border villages. Transport and Logistics Netherlands estimates the resulting delays for freight transport have caused millions of euros in economic losses.
Municipalities including Zevenaar, Montferland and Emmerich recently urged Germany’s Interior Ministry to move checks away from the border and conduct mobile inland enforcement instead. They received a brief response this week: “Nein.” German authorities said the system is working and will continue.
The controls, introduced as a temporary measure in 2024, are due for another review in September, when officials expect a further extension.
Bruls, who chairs the Euregio Rhine-Waal cooperation body representing about 50 regional authorities, said he will step up pressure on Germany. He also questioned Berlin’s emphasis on enforcement results, including the arrest of more than 150 suspected human smugglers. “Yes, great, over 150 human smugglers have been arrested. Note: along the entire border. The question is whether they would not also have been caught without these controls,” he said. “And to boast that other criminals have also been caught at the border is nonsense: that is not what this control is intended for.”
He added that he would welcome German assistance in December to help enforce Dutch fireworks rules at the border. “Let them help us with that. I have more need for that than chasing refugees,” Bruls said.