Germany Fears Another Wave of Refugees
While the Syrian civil war is rekindling, Germany fears a repeat of the 2015–2016 refugee crisis. Germany’s Rheinische Post newspaper on Monday cited various political spokesmen who explained possible new refugee movements and solutions.
The civilian population will once again be the ones to suffer from the fighting. It must fear being caught between the fronts of the various opposition forces and a counteroffensive by [Syrian dictator Bashar] Assad and his allies. This will also cause people to flee—in the short term to neighboring areas within Syria, as in the past. In the long term, however, the lack of prospects and further brutal clashes of an unresolved conflict will eventually force people to flee the country. The people in Syria, therefore, finally need stability after years of civil war—not instructions from the [Christian Democratic Union] as to where they can and cannot flee to.
—Lamya Kaddor, Green Party domestic policy spokesperson
New fears: There is “considerable potential for new refugee movements,” warned Jürgen Hardt, foreign-policy spokesperson for the parliamentary group of the Christian Democratic Union and Christian Social Union. Given that Turkey will play a key role, it is “urgently necessary for the [European Union] to quickly conclude a new migration pact with Turkey,” he noted.
Solution within Syria: Social Democrat foreign-policy politician Nils Schmid told the Funke Mediengruppe newspaper that it was important that a reconciliation process “encompasses all parts of Syria, promotes the reconciliation of the various groups, and ensures their political participation through constitutional reform.”
As a first step, Schmid called on Assad to release political prisoners. This could help “prevent a new refugee movement,” which would also be in Turkey’s interests, Schmid told the Rheinische Post.
Expect change: We can expect Germany’s reaction to the Syrian civil war to be very different from previous years. In fact, we expect the recent crisis to trigger a greater involvement in Syria.
Learn more: Read “Expect Dramatic Change in Syria.”
