Former German Chancellor Angela Merkel criticized the immigration policies of the Black-Red Coalition Government, led by Friedrich Merz. She emphasized asylum seekers’ right to fair legal procedures, saying: “If someone says ‘asylum’ at Germany’s borders, they must first go through the process — right at the border, if necessary — but there must be a process. That is how I understand European law.”
She said the new government is implementing the far right’s anti-immigration vision, telling West German Radio: “I cannot always just talk about the Alternative for Germany party and adopt its agenda. I also have to take on board the agenda of those who say, ‘Yes, we must limit the number of illegal immigrants, but we must continue to uphold our values.”
Merkel urged that individuals facing deportation be treated with dignity. Referring to asylum seekers from Afghanistan, she called on the government to find a viable solution for returning rejected applicants to their countries of origin. She also pressed the government to honor its obligations toward Afghan local employees, stating: “The Foreign Ministry knows that commitments have been made, and the new German government must now resolve this issue.”
The Berlin Administrative Court had ruled that rejecting asylum seekers at the border was illegal, but Federal Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt announced that he would uphold the rejection at the border, stating that the court’s decisions concerned individual cases.
Thorsten Frei, head of the German Chancellor’s Office, defended the interior minister’s position, saying: “First, Article 16a of the Basic Law, as well as Article 18 of the Asylum Act, stipulate something different. In fact, it must also be said that if someone has already been granted asylum somewhere in Europe, or if they arrive here through safe European countries, it is clear we are not dealing with a refugee, but with people coming from safe countries.”
