Seehofer wants to take in one in four refugees
Germany's Interior Minister Horst Seehofer has said in an interview that Germany would be willing to take in 25 percent of all refugees rescued off the coast of Italy. Germany, France, Italy and other governments plan to work out a new quota system at a meeting in Malta later this month. Does this mark a turning point in the refugee debate?
Top priority is to stop right-wing populists
Clearly several EU states don't want to run the risk of another Salvini government in Italy, Jutarnji list comments:
“What went on behind the scenes when this decision was taken? How did they reach it after hiding for years behind the Dublin Regulation, which saddled the countries where the refugees first set foot with all the responsibility and the costs? The fact is that Dublin was grist to the mill of Salvini's sovereigntists - who pose more of a threat to the EU than Brexit does. Macron, who has Le Pen breathing down his neck, has finally understood this and done a U-turn to prevent Salvini from reappearing at the negotiating table a year or so from now.”
The AfD as the main beneficiary
The daily newspaper Die Welt warns of the long-term consequences of Berlin's offer:
“At the moment we're talking about an additional few hundred migrants Germany would have to take. But one day, if their number skyrockets once more, taking them in would represent a major, perhaps overwhelming challenge to society and social peace. ... Germany would turn away if the idea of relieving the new government in Rome serves to further facilitate immigration according to the motto: 'One refugee less is one vote less for Matteo Salvini.' A policy aimed at weakening the right in Italy which at the same time strengthens the AfD in Germany can hardly be in the interests of its inventor.”