European Commission
President Jean-Claude Juncker warned Friday that if the Schengen
agreement on the free movement of people collapses due to
security concerns, the euro may end too. "No one talks about the
link between Schengen and the free circulation of capital,"
Juncker said. "The end of Schengen would threaten to end the
economic and monetary union and the problem of unemployment
would become even more significant. It's necessary to look at
things as a whole". He stressed that border controls are costly,
saying those between Sweden and Denmark cost 300 million euros
and those between Germany and Denmark cost 90 million.
He also lambasted the EU member States for the frequent
divisions shown, mentioning issues such as the refugee crisis,
terrorism, the Ukraine conflict and relations with Russia.
"I'm struck by the fragility of the EU and the rifts that
have occurred or are already announced," he said in his
start-of-year news conference.
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