MOSCOW (Sputnik) — All 19 immigrants requested asylum in Germany and were taken to a reception center at the nearby town of Eisenhuettenstadt.
"Officers with the joint Federal Police and Brandenburg traffic police force noticed that the Renault was carrying more passengers than is usual for this type of vehicle," the statement read.
Closer examination of the truck revealed six adult stowaways and eight children 1-9 years old. Police learned the 23-year-old driver had smuggled five other Iraqis to Frankfurt on the Oder shortly before he was caught.
The EU-Ukraine dialogue on visa liberalization was launched in 2008, while in November 2010 the European Union proposed Kiev an action plan for granting visa-free regime. The European Commission confirmed that Ukraine met all necessary conditions in December 2015. According to diplomatic sources, Ukraine could be granted visa-free regime in early spring of 2017.
In December 2016, the European Council, the European Parliament and the European Commission reached an agreement on an emergency suspension mechanism to be triggered in case of overwhelming migration. Such an agreement has been among the conditions raised by the council for the liberalization of the visa regime for Ukraine and Georgia.