Federal Minister of the Interior Nancy Faeser and her Czech counterpart Vít Rakušan today signed a new treaty between the Federal Republic of Germany and the Czech Republic on the two countries’ shared border. The new treaty replaces the existing border treaties of 1994 and 1999 without changing the location of the border.

EU requirements for spatial data will be applied to map the border in digital form. Such standardised mapping is necessary for producing cross-border spatial data. These data are important in the event of natural disasters such as flooding. They also create new opportunities, for example for the tourism industry in the UNESCO World Heritage Erzgebirge/Krušnohoří Mining Region.

Federal Minister Faeser said: “Germany and the Czech Republic are good neighbours, close friends and partners. We work together very well, especially in those regions where living and working on both sides of the border is everyday reality for many people. With the new border treaty, we will convert the border location data into digital form so that it can be better utilised for business and industry, transport and tourism.

Germany and the Czech Republic also work together intensively and very successfully to protect our people and fight cross-border crime effectively. Our Federal Police work side by side with their Czech partners.”

Vít Rakušan, Minister of the Interior of the Czech Republic, said: “I greatly appreciate the invitation and our friendly and important cooperation with Federal Minister Faeser, of our ministries and especially the Czech and German police forces. The new treaty will bring more efficient management of our national borders.“

Above all, the new border treaty will make it possible to represent in binding terms the exact course of the land border between Germany and the Czech Republic using a list of coordinates as well as digital and analogue maps. Doing so will make it easier for the public and government authorities to know precisely where the border is. In addition, the treaty will also provide for more flexible rules on border documentation, that is, the extensive documentation on the course and mapping of the border which contains detailed surveying information. The current Standing Commission for the German–Czech border will in future be responsible for keeping this documentation updated and making it available to the public in a suitable format.

In Germany, the German Bundestag must approve ratifying legislation before the treaty can enter into force.

The federal states of Bavaria and Saxony, which border the Czech Republic, were intensively involved in negotiating the treaty. The Standing Commission of the Länder for the assessment and approval of international treaties has also been informed.