Germany’s immigration crackdown will heap pressure on Brussels

In a drastic move to curb illegal immigration, the German government has announced that it will tighten controls on its borders. Long-term measures to reduce the number of asylum seekers entering the country are being discussed in cross-party talks in Berlin.

This represents paradigm shift on immigration. Germany opened its borders to over one million asylum seekers during the refugee crisis of 2015, and it did so – outwardly at least – with a sense of optimism. Then-chancellor Angela Merkel’s rallying call of ‘we can do this’ quickly turned into an official policy of ‘Wilkommenskultur’ – ‘Welcoming Culture’.

But nearly a decade later, the cultural, social and economic strain of mass immigration has become the top concern for German voters, forcing Berlin into a hectic rethink. The debate has come to a head after a spate of terror attacks and recent electoral gains by the anti-immigration Alternative für Deutschland (AfD). The CDU/CSU, the conservative opposition alliance, has demanded that refugees be turned away at the border, putting chancellor Olaf Scholz’s battered coalition of Social Democrats (SPD), Greens and Free Liberals (FDP) under pressure to respond.