It is a day in late September 2022. I am on a train from Denmark’s capital, Copenhagen, to the city of Lund in Sweden. At first glance, this train ride is just like any other. But when you look closely there is more to the picture. This short trip will give you much to see and to reflect on the meaning of the national border in Sweden in a time of globalization.

This article will take you through the border control any traveler entering Sweden by train can experience in Malmö Hyllie, Sweden’s first train station. While today this control is quite rare, back in 2022 it was a daily routine experience for people crossing the border from Denmark to Sweden.

In this article I will try to take you with me on this 15-minute journey – so sit back and enjoy this train ride over the Öresund.

From Copenhagen Airport to the Öresund Bridge

I am looking outside the window and listening to music while I contemplate the nice day I had exploring Copenhagen for the first time. On this day it has been exactly one month since I started with my Erasmus exchange year at Lund University. Everything is still new and exciting and I am eager to explore this part of Europe. While the train passes Copenhagen Airport I see many people with suitcases coming in and out of the train. This makes me reflect on how nice it is to be able to travel so freely across countries in Europe.

The train continues its journey and soon comes to the majestic Öresundsbridge. Even though it is not the first time I have crossed it, I am once again in awe of the spectacular view over the sea it gives me. And I am not the only one! My fellow passengers put out their phones to capture the best shot of this 15-minute ride connecting Sweden and Denmark.

While the train continues, I wonder at what point of this bridge the border between Sweden and Denmark is. Then, all of a sudden, I see a little Swedish flag on the side of the bridge, and I realize that there it is. No impressive fences or gates, I am in Sweden now. This border reduced to a tiny symbol makes me smile as it reminds me of my hometown, where the border between Switzerland and Austria is just a three-meter-long little bridge that you can cross by foot on your Sunday walk.

The Open Border of Sweden

Copenhagen Airport and the Öresundsbridge symbolize the European Union’s aspiration of a borderless community. To this aim, the so-called Schengen Agreement makes national borders inside Europe less important. At the same time, the focus shifts to the common protection of Europe’s ‘external borders’.

This is why projects like the Öresundsbridge are heavily financed to increase connectivity across natural borders such as the sea between Sweden and Denmark. Also, the history of this bridge is shaped by financial concerns. After many unsuccessful attempts throughout the 20th century, the lobbying activity of big European industries helped to start the building of the bridge in 1995.

The first train station in Sweden – Hyllie

As we leave the Öresundsbridge some things I didn’t think I would see appear on the sides of the train track: fences. The train slows down and the mental fences turn into high walls. I think to myself how strange this is, as I just reflected on the openness of the border 10 minutes ago.

As the train gets closer to Sweden there is an announcement in the train. “There is border control at Hyllie station. Keep your passports ready.” All of a sudden the atmosphere in the train changes. Indeed, hearing this doesn’t sound so chill anymore, does it?

Finally, the train enters Sweden’s first station – Malmö Hyllie. Right when entering Hyllie I can see that it is different here. When I look outside the window I see a big metal fence secluding the platform from the rest of Sweden. There is only one door in the fence through which all the passengers leaving the train have to go. There are a few police officers that stand at this door checking the documents of all the persons who want to enter Sweden like this.

The Identity control

As the train comes to a rest at Hylie station there is another announcement in the train: “The train will stop here for 10 minutes before resuming its journey.”  At first glance, I was a little confused about the reason why, but soon I understood.

The border control is not only at the metal fence but in the train itself as well.

After a few minutes of standing at Hyllie station, police officers enter the train. They go from person to person to check their passports or identity cards, also making sure that all bags stored on the overhead racks belong to someone sitting there. They seem determined and serious. Around their waist, they have automatic weapons and they seem to be in a state of tension as they constantly check their surroundings. They even check the toilets to make sure that nobody hides there and escapes their sharp eyes. Scary.

Slowly but surely they come closer to me. While they come closer to me I have a weird feeling in my stomach. Even though I have, as an Austrian, every legal right to enter and leave Sweden as I want, they make me feel uncomfortable with their big guns and uniforms – no offense.

After everything goes fast. I get my passport ready like the good EU citizen I am. They quickly take a look at it, say it is ok, and move on to the next passengers. I’m secretly relieved to not have been considered a criminal. What? It’s a rational fear, right? 10 minutes later, the show is over and the train must go on. All the persons have been controlled and the police leave the train. The train continues its journey towards the next stations while at Hyllie station, the fences close again, and the police get ready for the next train to arrive.

The Closed Border of Sweden

These control practices at Hyllie station symbolize the new sentiment in Europe that open borders are a security threat. In that sense, they act as a sorting mechanism for who should be allowed into the community of Europe and who not.

At the same time, these practices signal a lack of trust among EU member states that the EU frontier is enough protected. A prime example of this is the so-called ‘European refugee crisis’ of 2015. There individual states decided to implement border controls to implement a harsher vision of territorial control. Sweden was one of these States that decided to reinforce active border control. That is why, from 2016 onwards, all people going over the Öresundsbridge had to undergo rather frequent ID control as I experienced myself.

What a train ride taught me about the border of Sweden

In this short train ride from Denmark and Sweden, there is much to learn about today’s understanding of Sweden’s borders.

This journey enabled me to witness co-existing visions of the meaning of borders and the underlying issue of territorial sovereignty. On one hand, the Öresundsbridge reflects the cosmopolitan vision of open borders within Europe. On the other hand, the Hyllie station symbolizes the recurring sentiment of the importance of national border control.

The researcher Walters (2006) analyzed that these co-existing versions of borders symbolize a particular understanding of territorial sovereignty in times of globalization.

In that sense, globalization does not refer to a simple ‘debordering’ where the control of national borders slowly but surely becomes irrelevant. On the contrary, territorial sovereignty in times of globalization implies a simultaneous ‘rebordering’. This ‘rebordering’ refers to the systematic exclusion of unwanted parts of the global population.

Thus, territorial sovereignty refers to a heightened selectivity of who should be part of a national community and who is not. This often happens with the argumentation that they cannot handle the so-called ‘Migration crisis’ as also Sweden did when they closed down the border at Hyllie station.

However, this notion of ‘crisis’ is not unquestioned. Researchers and activist groups are keen to point out the problems associated with this framing. The alarmist notion underpinning of ‘crisis’ creates a view in which migration per se becomes an existential problem. This makes actual discussions about this very emotionally loaded topic very difficult. Therefore, border controls, like in Hyllie, become a necessity for the future survival of the nation. Simultaneously, discussions about the pros and cons of these actions become very difficult in this emotionally loaded topic.

What are your thoughts on border control in the EU? Thanks for reading!