July 4, 2018
Delo: The problem remains
STA, 4 July 2018 - Germany's decision not to take on the lion's share of Europe's burden of refugees is forcing the entire Europe to face the migration problem again, the newspaper Delo comments on the recent deal to limit immigration to Germany.
Given that other parts of Europe have also been shaken by a refugee crisis of gigantic proportions, the latest measures will not solve the problem, the paper says on Wednesday under the headline Still Dangerous Proportions of Refugee Crisis.
Limits to immigration will not help if local population from the Middle East has to run away from wars, and desperate people from the failed countries who have been let down by local elites will also be hard to stop from coming here.
"If it does not start acting like a superpower with convincing political and security safety mechanisms, Europe will remain a toy for the enemies of its openness and freedom."
Analysing the deal reached by German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Interior Minister Horst Seehofer, Delo notes that the 70-year-old political alliance between their parties has been through one of the most serious trials since 1976, when Bavarian leader Franz-Josef Strauss announced to part ways with the Christian Democrats (CDU).
It says their "political affection" was fully complicated by the refugee crisis, which pushed Merkel, in the eyes of Bavarian conservatives, even more to the centre-left.
With the latest deal, Seehofer will get what he has been demanding since the start of the refugee crisis three years ago.
However, one should wait until the October local election in Bavaria to see if stricter refugee laws help his Christian Socialists (CSU) keep their political domination.
Dnevnik: Deal driven by fear
The compromise that German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Interior Minister Horst Seehofer have reached on curbing immigration to Germany with transit centres and deportations was a result of fear on both sides, the newspaper Dnevnik says on Wednesday in the commentary entitled All Losers, and as summarised by the STA.
Seehofer of the Bavarian Christian Socialists (CSU) was afraid that his party would sacrifice him as the only scapegoat if they lose the Bavarian local election in autumn.
And Merkel of the Christian Democrats (CDU) has renounced her culture of welcoming migrants to preserve the partnership with the Bavarian sister party.
Despite the compromise, it is hard to expect that the chancellor and the interior minister will from now on be able to work in harmony in the government.
Even more so because implementing the compromise is also more of a wishful thinking than a realistic option.
The solution they "invented" is old – in 2015 it was categorically rejected by their Social Democratic coalition partner.
The paper therefore wonders whether the Social Democrats will now go along with this solution only because they are not keen on a new election.
The deal is also at stake because Austria's populist right-wing government is not exactly thrilled about taking back the refugees that will be deported from Germany.
Dnevnik also notes the deal means that Brussels and Berlin can no longer hope for a reasonable common European policy on refugees.
And finally, one can no longer rely that the German government will work to preserve the right to a refuge for those who are persecuted as one of the most important civilisational achievements after WWII, which is also written down in the German constitution.
Večer: Slovenia should move border fence from Croatia to Austria
The STA also reports on Večer’s comments on Germany's decision to start deporting migrants to countries where they had been registered upon entering the EU. This means that Slovenia would be better off transferring its border fence from the Kolpa to the Mura river in the north, the paper says.
In cases where this is not possible, the migrants would be simply sent to Austria, which has already said it would send them further south to Slovenia and Italy, the paper says under the headline The First Domino.
Deportations in Austria are to be handled by a new police and military unit called Puma, presented last week at an exercise just across the border with Slovenia in Spielfeld.
"What seemed as an exaggeration, like Robocops and machines fell onto the border from a dystopian apocalypse film could become a dark prophecy destined to fulfil. Now that Germany is no longer playing the game," the paper says.
"How is the issue being handled on the EU level? Not even European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker knows the answer to that."
He avoided commenting on the solo moves by Germany and Austria, saying he must first consult the legal service. "The same legal service he ignores when it comes to the border arbitration between Slovenia and Croatia."
