Austria is to seek an exemption from having to accept more asylum seekers under the EU relocation system. The government is arguing it has already taken in its fair share during the migrant crisis.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/E. Scheriau
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Austrian Chancellor Christian Kern told reporters in Vienna that the alpine nation of around 8.5 million had already welcomed more than its fair share of refugees into the country.
After accepting around 90,000 refugees in 2015, the EU gave Austria a temporary exception from the relocation program until 2017. However, the country is now expected to accept 2,000 people seeking asylum from Greece and Italy.
In response, Austria is to seek an "exemption" or "postponement" from the Europe Union (EU) refugee distribution program that requires countries in the bloc to accept a mandatory and proportional distribution of asylum-seekers who arrive in other member nations.
Kern intends to send Brussels a letter requesting an opt-outImage: Getty Images/AFP/J. Thys
"We believe an exception is necessary for Austria for having already fulfilled its obligation. We will discuss that with the European Commission," Chancellor Kern told the press on Tuesday following a weekly cabinet meeting. "We will send a letter as quickly as possible and then begin discussions," with Brussels, he added.
Kern stated that he would seek an exemption from EU obligations without a legal confrontation. "We are not the agent provocateur," Kern added.
The Social Democratic chancellor's announcement comes just a few weeks after he called on the EU to cut bloc funding to member states that shirk their refugee-relocation responsibilities.
A blow to the program
The Chancellor's announcement is a setback for an already-fragmented EU refugee relocation program.
The two-year plan, which expires this September, was supposed to cover 160,000 migrants. Yet the agreement included only a small portion of total migrant arrivals in the EU.
Migrants from Africa attempt to cross the Mediterranean to reach the EUImage: picture-alliance/AP Photo/S. Diab
EU: Austria could face 'consquences'
The EU rejected Kern's argument and called on Austria to honor the refugee relocation agreement or else face the consequences. EU spokesperson Natasha Bertraud said, "Austria is now expected to fulfill its legal obligation under the council decision to start relocating."
Bertraud also stated that Austria "can only choose to act outside the law, which we would find both deeply regrettable and not without consequences." No country can unilaterally withdraw from the 2015 agreement, she said.
Austria continues to tighten up
Kern's announcement is one more step in tightening Austria's security and immigration policy.
Germany recorded a sharp decline in the number of asylum-seekers entering the country in 2016, but requests for political asylum increased by over 56 percent as compared to 2015.
Image: dapd
First-time applications in 2016
A total of 722,370 first-time applicants filed requests for political asylum in Germany in 2016, according to the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF). The number reflects a roughly 65 percent increase compared to the previous year, when the total number of new applications stood at 441,899.
Image: picture-alliance/arifoto UG/M. Reichel
Follow-up requests 33.3 percent lower
The number of follow-up applications, however, recorded a decline of 33.3 percent. In 2015, 34,750 second-chance asylum requests were filed with BAMF, whereas in 2016 the number fell to 23,175.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/F. von Erichsen
Total asylum requests 56 percent higher
Combined, the number of first-time and follow-up applications for 2016 stood at 745,545. In 2015, this number stood at 476,649. So, BAMF recorded a 56.4 percent net increase in the total number of asylum requests in 2016 compared with 2015.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/M. Hadem
Applications from Syrians, Afghans, Iraqis
The highest number of requests in 2016 were filed by Syrian nationals. According to BAMF’s report, people from the war-torn Middle Eastern state submitted 266,250 of the new applications (36.9 percent). Afghan nationals came in second, with 127,012 (17.6 percent), followed by Iraqis, who filed 96,116 asylum requests (13.3 percent) last year.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/E. Gurel
Other prominent countries of origin
People from Iran filed 26,426 applications (3.7 percent). Eritreans submitted 18,854 applications (2.6 percent). Albanians totaled 14,853 (2.1 percent), 14,484 people from Pakistan requested asylum (2 percent), and Nigerians submitted 12,709 applications (1.8 percent).
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/W. Kumm
Young males make up majority of applicants
Nearly three-quarters of the applications filed in 2016 came from people younger than 30 years old. People aged between 18 and 25 filed 196,853 asylum requests, or about 23.5 percent of the overall total, making them the largest age group. The number of applications for children under the age of 4 stood at 78,192 (10.8 percent).
Image: Reuters/Kai Pfaffenbach
Almost 700,000 decisions reached in 2016
German authorities accepted 433,920 people of the 695,733 applications they decided on in 2016. The overall protection rate for all countries of origin amounted to 62.4 percent.
Image: Reuters/S. Loos
Crimes against refugee centers still high
Ranging from vandalism to arson, more than 900 attacks on refugee centers were recorded in Germany in 2016. The Federal Criminal Police Office reported that, out of the 921 recorded offenses, 857 were suspected to have had far-right motives. In 2015, 1,031 such offenses were recorded, 923 of which were suspected of having a far-right background.
