'JUDGEMENT DAY' for Merkel: Coalition partners to discuss Chancellor's EU migration deal
ANGELA Merkel’s political future will be determined at a showdown meeting later today, where the leadership of the Christian Social Union (CSU) party will congregate to determine whether to accept her updated EU migration deal.
Angela Merkel 'optimistic' EU will continue to work together
The German Chancellor has come under increasing pressure from her Interior Minister, Horst Seehofer, who has threatened to defy Merkel’s migration policy and order officials to reject asylum seekers at the German border if they have been registered in other EU states.
Mr Seehofer, who is also the CSU leader, gave Mrs Merkel until the end of the EU summit to agree on an “acceptable” policy with other EU member states to reduce the burden on Germany, or face the CSU breaking ranks from Mrs Merkel’s party.
There are fears such a move could lead to Mrs Merkel being ousted as leader of the Christian Democratic Union.
The German Chancellor has since announced bilateral deals with 14 EU member states for the rapid return of asylum seekers to the country in which they first arrived in the EU.
According to a document seen by German news agencies on Saturday, these countries include France, Finland, Belgium, Lithuania, Latvia, Luxembourg, Portugal, Sweden, Denmark, Estonia, Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic and the Netherlands.
What we achieved here together is perhaps more than I had expected
Speaking to reporters following the end of the EU summit, Mrs Merkel said: “What we achieved here together is perhaps more than I had expected.”
She stated the deal was “more than equivalent” to the demands placed on her by the CSU party.
However she noted: “We are not at the end of the road. I always said that we would never be able to agree a common European asylum system here.
“But the more we agree among ourselves, the closer we get to a possible European solution. I'm convinced of that."
The German Chancellor has also called for “anchor centres” to be set up on the German border to help process migrants arriving in the country, in a sign of her hardening asylum policy.
However she vowed to reinforce Frontex, the EU’s border security force, and to send German police to other EU nations to help secure Europe’s external borders.
She said: “We must also be prepared to help support Slovenia and Croatia with border control if necessary.”
Markus Soeder, Minister President of Bavaria, welcomed the updated policy, stating: “It goes absolutely in the right direction.”
He nevertheless remained wary of the upcoming regional elections in October, where the CSU are bidding to avoid further losses to the anti-immigration far-right party Alternative for Germany (AfD).
However other European officials have cast doubt over the finality of Mrs Merkel’s deal.
Zoltan Kovacs, a spokesman for the Hungarian Government, said: “No such deal has been reached.”
Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis added: “This alarming news is complete nonsense.
"Germany did not approach us, and in this moment I would not ratify such an agreement."