Germany’s Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt and his European counterparts have agreed on a set of goals to tighten asylum rules in the European Union, including allowing deportations to Afghanistan and Syria as standard practice. The meeting at Germany’s highest peak, the Zugspitze, follows Berlin’s decision in May to reject asylum seekers at the border, a policy it said was coordinated with neighboring countries but drew significant criticism.
The agreed asylum policy goals, which require approval from Brussels, include removing legislative obstacles to transferring rejected asylum seekers to secure centers outside the EU and enabling asylum procedures in third countries. Asylum seekers who have already been granted protection in another EU country will be quickly rejected if they claim asylum elsewhere in the bloc. “Once we seal the external border, there will be no need for internal border controls,” Polish Interior Minister Tomasz Siemoniak said.
Dobrindt emphasized the need for a “tougher and stricter” European Union immigration framework, stating that Germany is no longer sitting in the “brakeman’s cab” on migration issues in Europe, but is in the “locomotive”. The ministers expressed concerns that the overburdening of their countries by illegal migration is contributing massively to the polarization of society. “We want to push back this polarization,” Dobrindt said.
Hours before the meeting, Germany demonstrated its commitment to cracking down on migration by sending 81 Afghan nationals back to their homeland, prompting an outcry from rights organizations. Amnesty International criticized the deportations, saying the situation in Afghanistan is “catastrophic” and that “extrajudicial executions, enforced disappearances, and torture are commonplace”. Current Chancellor Friedrich Merz defended the expulsions, stating that all those expelled had exhausted their legal avenues for asylum and emphasized that none had an active residence status.
The United Nations said no one should be sent back to Afghanistan, whatever their status. The UN human rights commissioner called for an “immediate halt to the forcible return of all Afghan refugees and asylum-seekers”, highlighting the risks faced by returnees.
Al Jazeera’s Dominic Kane noted that while the ministers expressed ambitious aims, details on implementation remain vague. He remarked that discussions highlighted common interests, but the ministers acknowledged that unilateral actions were not feasible.