What is Schengen cooperation and why is it called that?

Schengen cooperation involves cooperation between many European countries aimed at creating a common area without internal borders. The basis for Schengen cooperation is the abolition of border controls for individuals at common borders within the Schengen area, supplemented with common rules on the crossing of external borders within the Schengen area and common visa rules for citizens of third countries. Schengen cooperation also involves the strengthening of the countries’ cooperation to combat cross-border crime, illegal immigration, etc.

Schengen cooperation is named after the town of Schengen in Luxembourg, where the Schengen Agreement was signed in 1985.

It was originally cooperation between EU countries which took place outside the framework of the EU treaties. The Schengen rules became part of EU cooperation through the Treaty of Amsterdam, which came into force on 1 May 1999. The legal basis for each of the Schengen rules’ provisions or decisions was subsequently adopted. The provisions concerning visas, inward travel and stays have now gained a legal basis in the supranational cooperation in Section IV of the EC Treaty.

Among other things, Schengen cooperation involves the abolition of border checks on individuals. This is for example why you no longer have to show a passport when you drive across the border between France and Germany or pass through passport control when you fly to Italy or Finland from Portugal, Greece or another country which is also participating in the part of the Schengen cooperation which involves the abolition of border controls.

Kaliningrad

The Russian enclave of Kaliningrad is situated like an island in the EU between Lithuania and Poland, without any direct connection with the rest of Russia. At a top-level meeting between the EU and Russia in November 2002, a solution was found to enable Lithuania and Poland to participate in the Schengen cooperation whilst also allowing Russian citizens to travel between Kaliningrad and Russia. The solution adopted was that Kaliningrad citizens would have a simplified transit document, which could be applied for at the station in Kaliningrad, rather than an actual visa. The possibility of a high-speed train service between Kaliningrad and Russia is also to be considered.