Kretschmer: Federal-Länder agreement only a first step

Saxony's Minister President Michael Kretschmer has criticized the results of the federal-state negotiations on migration as disappointing. Many points had been watered down by the federal government, the CDU politician said in Dresden on Tuesday. Nevertheless, the final decision was important as a first step. "It is not a turning point in migration policy, but it is an important step." Saxony's head of government also criticized the Federal Chancellor: "There are worlds between what Olaf Scholz is signaling to the public on migration issues and what he can now represent," said Kretschmer.

The heads of the federal states and Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) had negotiated in a marathon session into the early hours of Tuesday morning. The hard-won agreement provides for a change in the system for financing refugee costs and a reduction in benefits for asylum seekers. The German government also wants to examine whether asylum procedures outside of Europe are possible. Asylum procedures are also to be processed more quickly.

From Saxony's perspective, however, this does not go far enough: in a protocol note in the minister presidents' paper, the Free State, together with Bavaria, called for a fundamental change in migration policy. "Irregular migration pressure must be limited immediately and comprehensively. Otherwise, there is a risk of municipalities being completely overwhelmed and the political stability of the country being jeopardized," the statement reads.

To this end, the two federal states are calling, among other things, for the basic right to asylum in its current form to be reconsidered and further developed. "The aim must be to ensure that those who are not entitled to protection can be effectively turned back at the German border," reads the protocol declaration of the two federal states.