Seehofer
gives Merkel an ultimatum on migrants
The
Bavarian leader demands a change of course by Sunday.
By IVO OLIVEIRA
10/27/15, 6:14 PM CET Updated 10/28/15, 5:56 AM CET
Bavaria’s most
powerful politician on Tuesday warned German Chancellor Angela Merkel
to end her controversial stance on migration and criticized Austria
for its “open border” policy on refugees.
Horst Seehofer,
leader of the Christian Social Union, the Bavarian sister party of
Merkel’s Christian Democrats, blasted Merkel’s decision to open
Germany’s borders and welcome refugees fleeing the war zones. He
said the situation in Bavaria is becoming unbearable and lays much of
the blame on Vienna.
“Austria’s
behavior has strained neighborly relations. We can and must not treat
each other this way,” Seehofer said in an interview with the German
newspaper Passauer Neue Presse on Tuesday.
Bavarian authorities
complain that Austria lets thousands of refugees cross the border
into the German state without warning.
Seehofer gave Merkel
a deadline of All Saints’ Day, which is Sunday, to change policy.
“If I do not
succeed, we need to consider what options we have,” he said.
The Bavarian state
leader’s complaints about Merkel’s migration policy are not new.
He has threatened to take the matter to the German constitutional
court if the chancellor fails to limit the number of refugees
entering Germany.
Julia Klöckner, the
deputy CDU leader, criticized Seehofer’s warning to Merkel. In an
interview with Deutschlandfunk, she said, “With ultimatums, I
believe we will not get much further.”
European Commission
President Jean-Claude Juncker mentioned Seehofer’s ultimatum in a
speech at the European Parliament in Strasbourg Tuesday.
He said that any
“solemn appeals from Bavaria or from elsewhere are not needed,”
adding that “if others would be so active tackling the refugee
crisis as the Commission does day and night, then we would be much
further [advanced].”
Authors:
Ivo Oliveira
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