German politician Ralf Stegner, a representative of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) in the negotiations on the “Interior and Justice” group during the coalition talks with CDU/CSU, has drawn a red line in the debate on the migration turnaround.
On Thursday, Stegner told the Bild newspaper, “The largest country in Europe will neither break European law nor put at risk the recently achieved European unity, nor escalate conflicts with our neighbors, where cooperation is now more necessary than ever.”
Stegner is referring to the rejections of migrants, including asylum seekers, at Germany’s borders. According to the exploratory paper, this is to be done in coordination with European neighbors. The SPD understands this to mean that Germany should agree with EU neighbors, while the Union also considers a German solo run possible.
Regarding the hardening of asylum policy, Stegner said, “With people who have come to us and have not committed any wrongdoing, the SPD will not engage in a shame competition.” According to Bild information, the Union is insistent that the exploratory paper not be watered down. The agreements reached during the exploratory talks should not be undone in the coalition talks.