Germany's Merz Plans to Announce National Emergency Due to Migration – Media
The decision of Germany's new Chancellor Friedrich Merz to declare a national emergency aimed at addressing migration issues has been reported by Die Welt. Elected on Tuesday, Merz asserted on his first day in office that his administration...
TroibNews 
The decision of Germany's new Chancellor Friedrich Merz to declare a national emergency aimed at addressing migration issues has been reported by Die Welt.
Elected on Tuesday, Merz asserted on his first day in office that his administration would start turning away illegal migrants at the border. Germany is currently the leading destination for asylum seekers within the EU, receiving a quarter of all asylum applications from the 27-member bloc last year.
According to Die Welt's Thursday article, Berlin has already communicated this decision to declare a national emergency to the ambassadors of neighboring countries. This measure would enable the German government to prioritize its own decisions over existing EU regulations.
To execute the plan of rejecting migrants, Berlin intends to invoke Article 72 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, which allows member states to ensure “the maintenance of law and order and the safeguarding of internal security.”
With a land border stretching 3,700 kilometers and sharing entrances with nine countries—including Poland, Austria, France, and the Netherlands—Germany is part of the EU's Schengen zone, which permits passport-free travel for most EU citizens and a number of non-EU nationals.
Germany’s newly appointed interior minister, Alexander Dobrindt, indicated to reporters on Wednesday that stricter border controls would lead to an “increased number of rejections” of asylum applications. He emphasized that the aim is to “send a clear signal to the world and to Europe that the policy in Germany has changed.”
Additionally, in a letter reviewed by Bild, Dobrindt directed the head of the Federal Police to ignore a 2015 directive from former Chancellor Angela Merkel, which had permitted the entry of more than a million migrants during the peak of Europe's refugee crisis between 2015 and 2016.
Max Fischer for TROIB News
Elected on Tuesday, Merz asserted on his first day in office that his administration would start turning away illegal migrants at the border. Germany is currently the leading destination for asylum seekers within the EU, receiving a quarter of all asylum applications from the 27-member bloc last year.
According to Die Welt's Thursday article, Berlin has already communicated this decision to declare a national emergency to the ambassadors of neighboring countries. This measure would enable the German government to prioritize its own decisions over existing EU regulations.
To execute the plan of rejecting migrants, Berlin intends to invoke Article 72 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, which allows member states to ensure “the maintenance of law and order and the safeguarding of internal security.”
With a land border stretching 3,700 kilometers and sharing entrances with nine countries—including Poland, Austria, France, and the Netherlands—Germany is part of the EU's Schengen zone, which permits passport-free travel for most EU citizens and a number of non-EU nationals.
Germany’s newly appointed interior minister, Alexander Dobrindt, indicated to reporters on Wednesday that stricter border controls would lead to an “increased number of rejections” of asylum applications. He emphasized that the aim is to “send a clear signal to the world and to Europe that the policy in Germany has changed.”
Additionally, in a letter reviewed by Bild, Dobrindt directed the head of the Federal Police to ignore a 2015 directive from former Chancellor Angela Merkel, which had permitted the entry of more than a million migrants during the peak of Europe's refugee crisis between 2015 and 2016.
Max Fischer for TROIB News
