The upcoming EU summit next week is expected to focus on discussions for suspending the Schengen Area passport free travel for two more years. This comes as no surprise. Brussels speak is quite a difficult jargon to master, but reading between the lines, EU President Donald Tusk has been hinting at it for quite some time.

Since 1995, people have been able to cross borders among Schengen Area member countries without document checks. Each of the current 26 countries in the Schengen Area is allowed to unilaterally put up border controls for a maximum of six months, but that time limit can be extended for up to two years if a member is found to be failing to protect its borders. In fact, Malta withdrew Schengen travel in the run up to the Valletta Migration Summit and the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting last year. The decision incurred the ire of opposition leader Simon Busuttil, however, most people on the street thought it was a good idea and there was much talk saying that passport identification should be made mandatory, at least until the migration crisis and terror worries subside. This newspaper supported the decision.

It is clear that Greece cannot cope with the influx of migrants. The sheer number of boat trips per day, even in the depths of winter, has overwhelmed their financially and asset stretched Coast Guard to the limit. In fact, the European Commission has expressed the need and desire for a European Union Coast Guard Agency. While this will obviously help the Greeks in dealing with migration, it should also be of benefit to Malta, being an island state in the Mediterranean, as well as the Italian territory of Lampedusa.

EU nations have acknowledged that the overall functioning of Schengen "is at serious risk".

So far, five Schengen members have imposed border checks, and many of those would have to dismantle them starting in mid-May under Schengen rules. Germany has until May 13, and has made clear that it does not want to relinquish the checks. The other countries are France, Austria, Denmark, and Norway.

There is no doubt that passport free travel within the European Union is a security risk. It became abundantly clear that this was the case when Malta temporarily pulled out of the Schengen zone. People trying to gain access to Malta with fake documents were being caught at border control practically every day.

Does this mean that the EU will become looser and more divided? Probably not. The one biggest problem would be a Brexit. Make no mistake, UK Prime Minister David Cameron has been bullish with the issue and although Schengen is on the agenda, he will more than likely push for his reform discussion to take centre state. The UK is not part of Schengen anyway, so he is likely to be quite disinterested in any discussion on that particular matter. With the Central European powers pushing for more integration and a closer knit Europe on the Federal model, this is likely to jar. The Summit kicks off Thursday and it remains to be seen whether Schengen withdrawal is a fait accompli or a real discussion and sharing of ideas between member states.