Harmonious tones on the open stage: The country leaders and Chancellor Scholz appear united after joint discussions on asylum policy. A lot has been achieved, but we now have to “stick with it,” said the Chancellor.
After the Prime Minister’s Conference on Migration, Chancellor Olaf Scholz presented the results together with Hesse’s Prime Minister Boris Rhein (CDU) and Lower Saxony’s Prime Minister Stephan Weil (SPD).
Under the pressure of persistently high numbers of asylum seekers, the federal and state governments agreed in November after a long and tough dispute on measures to reduce refugee migration to Germany. Today the heads of government met again to take stock. Overall, they see Germany on the right track when it comes to migration policy, but they do not expect a rapid decline in the number of asylum seekers.
Scholz was also confident: the Chancellor emphasized that fundamental changes had already been initiated in the past few months. When it comes to limiting irregular migration, we shouldn’t just “lay our hands in our laps.” It is now important to implement the measures decided on in November. This “sticking with it” was reinforced again today at the meeting.
Conciliatory tones from the Union
Although the Union Prime Ministers in particular had described the migration situation as problematic in the run-up to the conference, the chairman of the Prime Minister’s Conference, Hesse’s Prime Minister Boris Rhein (CDU), was satisfied with the discussions.
Migration policy is an “incredibly complex topic” and he is happy that great progress has been made, for example with the introduction of a payment card for asylum seekers, said Rhein. He hopes that the card will be introduced nationwide as early as summer. The federal and state governments have shown that they have a common roadmap and are able to act. Now it’s about “implementing all of this consistently.”
“I couldn’t have imagined that we would ever achieve so much together, that we would bring so much speed to the topic,” emphasized Rhein. As examples, the Prime Minister cited the classification of Georgia and Moldova as safe countries of origin. He personally also finds the debate initiated by party colleagues about an upper limit for asylum seekers legitimate.
Weil calls for necessary realism
Prime Minister Weil (SPD) warned against getting lost in the discussion about an upper limit for asylum seekers. “I make no secret of my skepticism,” he said. The reason he cited was legal hurdles that would stand in the way of possible implementation. There was no decision in this regard at the Prime Minister’s Conference.
The Prime Minister of Lower Saxony also called for the necessary realism in the debate. The effect of the EU agreement on a reform of the Common European Asylum Policy will only become noticeable with a certain delay.
Next meeting at the end of June
The next meeting of the Prime Ministers is planned for June 20th. Then the federal government should present what came out of its examination of asylum procedures in third countries. The Federal Ministry of the Interior is discussing the question of whether such procedures would be legally and practically possible outside the EU with lawyers and experts.