At least five thousand police officers are missing in Germany, while they are under increasing pressure.

The German Police Union (GdP) has called for the recruitment of thousands of new police officers, according to the German newspaper Junge Freiheit. As reported, Nancy Faeser, the Social Democrat federal interior minister, recently announced that authorities are reintroducing regular checks at German state borders starting today. Officially, the federal government aims to curb illegal migration, but in reality, the decision was made by Chancellor Olaf Scholz and his government with an eye on the upcoming state elections in Brandenburg this weekend. As voters have noticeably turned away from the ruling parties in recent months, they are bracing for another defeat in Brandenburg.

The union believes that up to five thousand additional federal police officers are needed to cope with the current demands and pressure, GdP President Andreas Rosskopf told the German daily Bild. He emphasised that officers are already under constant strain.

“Additionally, we have thousands of investigation files on cases of human smuggling lying on our desks, which we cannot process due to a lack of personnel,”

– he added. Current demands are immense, with crime at railway stations rising sharply, and the threat from climate activists at airports growing. The federal police must also ensure the security of critical infrastructure and at football matches. According to the union, the pressure and stress on officers is increasing every day, primarily due to staff shortages.