Chancellor Olaf Scholz wants to stop the current trend of increasing migration to Germany with various measures. “The number of refugees seeking to go to Germany is too high at the moment,” said the SPD politician to the Editorial Network Germany (RND).

“That’s why we have been supporting the protection of Europe’s external borders for a long time. And we are continuing the additional border security measures with Austria; we have agreed on joint controls on their side with Switzerland and the Czech Republic.”

Scholz: We hope that measures will quickly become noticeable

If an asylum application was rejected, those affected would have to leave Germany again. “We have to make sure of that,” emphasized Scholz. The government in Warsaw, in turn, must ensure that visas are no longer sold and refugees are not “waved through” to Germany. “That’s why we have tightened controls at the border with Poland.” Taken together, the measures should have an impact on refugee numbers. Scholz: “We hope that this will become noticeable quickly.”

Scholz emphasized that he was aiming for an agreement with the Prime Ministers in November on the issue of financing refugee costs in the municipalities. “Even as Federal Finance Minister, I suggested a solution to the states that was based on the actual access figures – a kind of breathing cap.” The federal states recently demanded such a per capita regulation from the federal government, but in last week’s discussions there was still no agreement, particularly on the amount of federal support.

Thuringia’s initial reception center no longer accepts refugees

Meanwhile, in Thuringia’s largest state first admission, the situation continued to deteriorate. The state initial reception centers are no longer accepting refugees for the time being. People arriving in Suhl would either be distributed to the smaller initial reception centers in Eisenberg and Hermsdorf or, if possible, to other federal states, said a spokesman for the Migration Ministry. The background is the high level of stress in Suhl over the last few days. On Friday, over 1,500 people were accommodated there. Only 1,400 would be permitted under fire protection law. According to government information, the number 800 is the limit for regular operations.

The admission stop will apply until the fire protection limit is maintained again, said a spokeswoman for the state administration office.