Germany open to resettling children from Greek refugee camps
March 9, 2020
Germany's government is seeking a "coalition of the willing" to take in the children across Europe. The EU wants to avoid a repeat the 2015 refugee crisis as thousands of refugees and migrants gather at Greece's border.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/O. Kose
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Germany is prepared to take in "an appropriate share" of the neediest refugee children housed in overcrowded Greek migrant camps, German officials said on Monday.
The country is set take children in as part of "a coalition of the willing" to be made up of other EU countries.
The announcement from the German government came after its Chancellor, Angela Merkel, met with members of her coalition government to discuss the humanitarian crisis on Greece's borders and in its migrants camps. Migrants and refugees have been amassing along the Greece-Turkey border ever since Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said its borders were open to refugees seeking to cross into Greece.
Up to 1,500 children would be supported
The plan is set to help between 1,000 - 1,500 children identified as being particularly in need. This means either unaccompanied children under the age of 14 or children in need of urgent medical assistance. News agency AFP said most of those set to benefit were girls.
Chair of Germany's ruling CDU party, Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, said that France could possibly join the "coalition of the willing." It is not known which other countries are interested in participating.
DW's Turkey correspondent Julia Hahn, who has been reporting from the border, described the conditions for children and families.
“It’s been particularly tough for families with small children," Hahn said on Monday. "Thousands of people have moved to the Greek border. It's been 11 days in the cold with a plastic tent at most. People are relying on food aid."
"We've also seen violent scenes playing out there," she added.
Intense fighting in the Idlib region of Syria has caused a new wave of refugees to flee over the Turkish border. Turkey has already taken in over 3.5 million Syrian refugees assisted by billions of Euros of aid provided by the EU under a 2016 deal that ensured Turkey would stop the migrants and refugees entering Europe.
Erdogan said Turkey cannot cope with the new influx unless it receives more assistance from the EU, but last week the EU Foreign Affairs Council said it won't be pressured by Turkey into giving it more money.
EU leaders and Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan are due in Brussels later on Monday. They will "discuss EU-Turkey matters, including migration, security, stability in the region and the crisis in Syria," Michel's spokesman said on Twitter.
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.
