Western Balkan workers are critical to some German industries, but a migration scheme may be greatly reduced. The CDU party wants to starkly reduce the number of Western Balkan workers coming to Germany.
Turkish government sources say the aim of the video call is to rework a 2016 deal that obliges Turkey to prevent refugees entering the EU in return for financial aid.
Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz argued that Operation Sophia promoted human trafficking. Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel said that EU vessels beholden to bloc laws would be better than independent NGO boats.
Chancellor Merkel, in Davos, has said the conflict in Libya must be stopped before another refugee crisis begins. She added that a global decrease in diplomacy was making regions like the Sahel more unstable.
Two German parties are at loggerheads over how to deal with overcrowded migrant camps in Greece. The Greens are urging the government to come to the aid of 4,000 children, while the CDU said it is "not a solution."
Turkey should stop its 'blackmail' if it wants more aid from the European Union, the Greek migration minister has said. He also blamed Turkey for the recent rise in the number of migrants arriving in Greece.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel has defended private sea rescue in the Mediterranean against criticism, calling it a “humanitarian imperative.” She also said, among other things, that it wasn’t always the “poorest and weakest” who were coming to Europe. Meanwhile, the over 500 rescued migrants aboard NGO vessels Ocean Viking and Open Arms are still in limbo.
Germany's third-largest party, Alternative for Germany, seems set to become 'number one in the east' following state elections in the next few months. The party members are known for making controversial remarks, but what are the AfD's actual policies on migration and refugees?
Angela Merkel was right to take in nearly 1 million refugees in 2015, EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said in an interview. He also revealed how he got Donald Trump to kiss him.
Germany's far-right AfD party has attacked the Merkel government for reportedly spending 23 billion euros on asylum and integration last year, calling it a waste of public money on an expensive 'welcome party' for migrants. But the country's national public TV station ZDF says the amount that was actually spent on asylum seekers was much less.
CDU leader Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer wants a "comprehensive review" of Germany's immigration system. Contradicting Angela Merkel, the new party leader said scrutiny of the fateful year of 2015 was necessary.
Judges on Germany's highest court unanimously threw out legal complaints brought by the AfD. They said far-right lawmakers failed to show how Merkel's 2015 decision to let in refugees was a constitutional violation.