German President calls for cross-party compromise on migration

German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier called for a willingness to compromise by all participants in next week’s cross-party talks on migration, amid an increasingly tense atmosphere in the country. The DPA news agency quoted Steinmeier’s statement.

The German president noted that he is following the consultations between Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s government and the conservative opposition in anticipation of a common understanding between them.

“I am convinced that it is the parties of the democratic centre that should find answers to the questions that cause concern for many people,” Steinmeier said, adding that joint inter-party efforts are needed.

Earlier, Steinmeier promised that Germany as a whole would strive to find a solution to the problem of illegal migration.

“We have to make every effort, really every effort, to implement the rules to restrict access that already exists and those that we are now creating in addition,” Steinmeier said.

On August 29, amid the outcry over the terrorist attack in Solingen, the German government agreed on a package of measures on migration and asylum for refugees.

The leader of the opposition CDU, Friedrich Merz, called for a general ban on accepting people from Syria and Afghanistan. SPD Secretary General Kevin Kunert and Justice Minister Marco Buschmann rejected this proposal, citing the Constitution. 

On August 30, Germany deported Afghan citizens for the first time since the Taliban islamist movement recaptured power in Afghanistan.