Poland reinstates border controls with Germany and Lithuania to discourage asylum-seekers

SLUBICE, Poland (AP) — Poland reinstated border controls on Monday with Germany and Lithuania, following similar German restrictions imposed earlier this year aimed at discouraging asylum-seekers.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, whose government recently survived a confidence vote in parliament, announced the restrictions last week. Pressure has been mounting after far-right groups in Poland have alleged that Germany was transporting migrants into Polish territory after they reached Western Europe.

The reinstated controls, which began overnight Sunday, will last for an initial period of 30 days, though authorities haven't ruled out extending them, according to the Polish Ministry of Internal Affairs and Administration.

“Illegal migration is simply a crime,” Polish Interior Minister Tomasz Siemoniak said Sunday during a news conference.

The border guard discovered an alleged smuggling operation within minutes of the controls taking effect overnight, officials said. An Estonian citizen was allegedly trying to take four Afghan nationals over the Lithuanian border, according to the Polish News Agency.

"We’re doing this for you as well," Tusk said during a joint news conference with Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof, the news agency reported. "For the Germans, for the Dutch, for the French — because this is the European Union border.”

The Polish border with Lithuania, which stretches 104 kilometers (65 miles), will see checks in 13 locations. Poland’s border with Germany, 467 kilometers (290 miles) long, will have controls at 52 crossing points.

Lithuanian authorities said on Monday they were ready to deal with possible traffic jams at the Polish border.

“If traffic begins to build up, we will start managing the flow ... to minimize disruptions and keep checks as brief as possible,” Antanas Montvydas, deputy head of Lithuania’s State Border Guard Service told Lithuania radio.

After taking office in May, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who made a tougher migration policy a pillar of his election campaign, ordered more police at the border and said that some asylum-seekers trying to enter Europe’s biggest economy would be turned away.

Last week, Merz said that Poland and Germany were in close contact to keep the impact of Germany’s border controls “as low as possible.”

“The protection of borders against irregular migration is an interest that Germany has, that Poland has, that our European neighbors share with us," Stefan Kornelius, Merz's spokesperson, said Monday. "We do not want permanent border controls.”

The European Union has a visa-free travel area, known as Schengen, that allows citizens of most member states to travel easily across borders for work and pleasure. Switzerland also belongs to Schengen, although it's not an EU member.

According to the EU, member states are allowed to temporarily reintroduce border controls in cases of a serious threat, like internal security. It says border controls should be applied as a last resort in exceptional situations, and must be limited in time.

“Such measures must undoubtedly be temporary and must achieve results as quickly as possible and be terminated,” Lithuania President Gitanas Nausėda told reporters on Sunday, adding that Poland’s decision shows that it is not yet possible to “ideally control” the external borders.

Stefanie Dazio and Kirsten Grieshaber in Berlin, Liudas Dapkus in Vilnius, Lithuania, and Rafal Niedzielski in Warsaw, Poland, contributed to this report.

Follow AP’s global coverage of migration at https://apnews.com/hub/migration

Polish border police check passengers on a bus at a checkpoint bordering Germany, in Slubice, Poland, Monday, July 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)

Polish border police check vehicles at a checkpoint bordering Germany, in Slubice, Poland, Monday, July 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)

Polish border police check vehicles at a checkpoint bordering Germany, in Slubice, Poland, Monday, July 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)

A Polish border police officer checks a vehicle at a checkpoint bordering Germany, in Slubice, Poland, Monday, July 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)

Polish border police check vehicles at a checkpoint bordering Germany, in Slubice, Poland, Monday, July 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)

LAS VEGAS (AP) — The New York Knicks might get a trophy. Tyler Kolek's dad might get a car.

The NBA Cup final will have San Antonio against the Knicks on Tuesday night in Las Vegas. The game won't count in the standings, and the stats won't be added to any official totals. But there is a trophy, bragging rights and money at stake.

By making it to the final, the Knicks and Spurs already have secured $212,373 per player from the NBA Cup prize money pool. The losing team on Tuesday gets nothing extra. Players on the winning team get an additional $308,560 — pushing their Cup winnings to $530,933 each. Two-way players get half of what players on standard contracts get.

“It means a lot to some," Kolek said. “Maybe not as much to others, obviously.”

He's in the “some” group.

Kolek, a backup guard for the Knicks, is making $2.2 million this season. In the real world, that's a lot of money. In the NBA world, not so much. Take a look at some other Knicks players' salaries: Karl-Anthony Towns is making $53.1 million this season, OG Anunoby is making $39.6 million, Jalen Brunson is making $34.9 million, Mikal Bridges is making just under $25 million and Josh Hart around $19.5 million.

Those guys — and plenty of the Spurs players, too — are used to seeing checks exceeding $500,000. Kolek surely isn't. But he's earned his shot to win big in Vegas, by being a big reason why the Knicks got to the final.

New York outscored Orlando by 18 points in Kolek's 16 minutes in Saturday's semifinals. When Kolek wasn't on the floor, the Magic outscored the Knicks by six. He finished with four points and four assists; the stats might not seem impressive, but his energy was a huge plus for New York.

“Tyler did a fantastic job today, our young fella, of impacting winning,” Towns said after the game. “And he did that on a big stage. ... One of his finest games as an NBA player was tonight, and it may not show up on the stats sheet, but everybody in our locker room knows how important he was to us.”

Kolek took his NBA Cup quarterfinal bonus from last season, a little over $50,000, and bought his mother a car. This year, he has said it could be his father's turn for a new vehicle. The question is, will the bigger bonus this year lead to a better car for his dad.

Knicks coach Mike Brown — who raves about Kolek's competitive juices and has rewarded him with a bigger role in recent weeks — can't wait to find out.

“I just want to know if his dad’s going to get a better car than his mom or vice versa, because we’ll find out soon which parent he likes more,” Brown said, laughing. “Better be his mom. ... Hey, I’m not causing trouble. I've just got two eyes open. Wait to see what he’s going to do. Just take care of your mom. Just remember that. Take care of your mom.”

It's a nice problem to have, for sure.

“That's a big amount of money for a guy like myself," Kolek said. “It’s not only about the money. We want to win this to hold up the trophy and for the fans.”

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA

Orlando Magic guard Desmond Bane (3) passes the ball between New York Knicks' Tyler Kolek (13) and Og Anunoby (8) in the second half of an NBA Cup semifinals basketball game, Saturday, Dec. 13, 2025, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Ronda Churchill)

New York Knicks guard Tyler Kolek (13) dribbles the ball during the first half of an NBA Cup semifinals basketball game against the Orlando Magic, Saturday, Dec. 13, 2025, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Ronda Churchill)