German Chancellor Olaf Scholz welcomed the EU’s pact on migration and asylum, which includes a tightening of all EU migration rules, calling the reform a “historic, irreplaceable step.”
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“The reform of the pan-European asylum system is a symbol of solidarity between European states. It limits illegal migration and finally eases the burden of countries that have been particularly hard hit. A historic, irreplaceable step,” Scholz wrote on his X (formerly Twitter) page.
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German Foreign Minister Annalena Bärbock also spoke out in support of the reform.
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“Europe receives binding rules based on humanity and order. Mandatory European solidarity is an important milestone. This is also good news for German municipalities,” she noted on her page on the same social network.
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The EU reform in the field of migration and asylum was also welcomed by the head of the German Interior Ministry, Nancy Feser. “The European Parliament’s approval of a common European asylum system is a great success. After many years of negotiations, we have agreed on this comprehensive package. In doing so, we have bridged the deep divide in Europe,” she said.
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On April 9, the European Parliament voted at a mini-session in Brussels for the EU pact on migration and asylum, which includes tightening all EU migration standards. This sweeping set of reforms, in the works since 2015, introduces principles for filtering migrants at borders, simplifies rules for their deportation outside the community, and also allows countries to pay a fee to the EU budget to avoid accepting quota-based migrants.
