Germany has said the number of new migrants is expected to fall for a second year in a row after peaking in 2015. And Interior Minister de Maiziere has praised a scheme that pays failed asylum seekers to return home.
Image: Reuters/M. Dalder
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The number of new asylum seekers arriving in Germany is expected to be lower than the maximum intake of 200,000 being pushed by some corners of the Bundestag, German Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere said on Sunday.
"I presume a total of fewer than 200,000 migrants" for all of 2017, de Maiziere told Germany's Bild am Sonntag newspaper. The total number of new arrivals welcomed in Germany by late November stood at around 173,000, the interior minister added.
Europe's largest economy took in almost a million migrants in 2015 following a mass exodus of people from conflict-ridden regions such as Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan. New arrivals fell to around 280,000 in 2016, with most arriving in the first quarter of that year.
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The sharp fall is likely due to the sealing-off of the so-called Balkan route, as well as the European Union's controversial refugee deal with Turkey. Meanwhile, Italian authorities, backed by Berlin and Brussels, have intensified maritime efforts in the Mediterranean Sea to stop migrants reaching Italy from northern Africa.
The latest migrant figures could have significant political implications in Berlin. German Chancellor Angela Merkel from the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) has come under intense pressure from her Bavarian sister party, the Christian Social Union, to set an annual maximum intake of 200,000. Merkel has agreed to the figure but labelled it as a "benchmark" rather than a fixed number.
Merkel's decision to effectively tolerate the arrival of hundreds of thousands of refugees in 2015 sparked a xenophobic backlash from certain pockets of the country, and contributed to the anti-immigrant Alternative for Germany (AfD) party's picking up almost 13 percent of the vote in September's federal election.
Germany has for years provided rejected asylum seekers and others with financial help to return to their home countries, including costs associated with travel and restarting life back home. Under the new scheme, families can now receive up to €3,000 ($3,526) and individuals up to €1,000 if they voluntarily return home by the end of February.
According to de Maiziere, the Interior Ministry received around 200 applications in the first 10 days after the scheme was launched, with most applicants coming from Russia, Iraq and Afghanistan.
How did Europe's refugee crisis start?
From escalating violence in the Middle East and Africa to incoherent asylum policy at home - DW looks at how the EU has found itself in the midst of a refugee crisis.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa
Fleeing war and poverty
In late 2014, with the war in Syria approaching its fourth year and Islamic State making gains in the north of the country, the exodus of Syrians intensified. At the same time, others were fleeing violence and poverty in countries such as Iraq, Afghanistan, Eritrea, Somalia, Niger and Kosovo.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa
Seeking refuge over the border
Vast numbers of Syrian refugees had been gathering in border-town camps in neighboring Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan since 2011. By 2015, with the camps full to bursting and residents often unable to find work or educate their children, more and more people decided to seek asylum further afield.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa
A long journey on foot
In 2015 an estimated 1.5 million people made their way on foot from Greece towards western Europe via the "Balkan route". The Schengen Agreement, which allows passport-free travel within much of the EU, was called into question as refugees headed towards the wealthier European nations.
Image: Getty Images/M. Cardy
Desperate sea crossings
Tens of thousands of refugees were also attempting the perilous journey across the Mediterranean on overcrowded boats. In April 2015, 800 people of various nationalities drowned when a boat traveling from Libya capsized off the Italian coast. This was to be just one of many similar tragedies - by the end of the year, nearly 4,000 refugees were reported to have died attempting the crossing.
Image: Reuters/D. Zammit Lupi
Pressure on the borders
Countries along the EU's external border struggled to cope with the sheer number of arrivals. Fences were erected in Hungary, Slovenia, Macedonia and Austria. Asylum laws were tightened and several Schengen area countries introduced temporary border controls.
Image: picture-alliance/epa/B. Mohai
Closing the open door
Critics of German Chancellor Angela Merkel's "open-door" refugee policy claimed it had made the situation worse by encouraging more people to embark on the dangerous journey to Europe. By September 2016, Germany had also introduced temporary checks on its border with Austria.
Image: Reuters/F. Bensch
Striking a deal with Turkey
In early 2016, the EU and Turkey signed an agreement under which refugees arriving in Greece could be sent back to Turkey. The deal has been criticized by human rights groups and came under new strain following a vote by the European Parliament in November to freeze talks on Turkey's potential accession to the EU.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/A. Altan
No end in sight
With anti-immigration sentiment in Europe growing, governments are still struggling to reach a consensus on how to handle the continuing refugee crisis. Attempts to introduce quotas for the distribution of refugees among EU member states have largely failed. Conflicts in the Middle East and elsewhere show no signs coming to an end, and the death toll from refugee sea crossings is on the rise.
