Balkan route: Seehofer warns of increasing migration pressure

Berlin - Federal Interior Minister Horst Seehofer (CSU) has warned of rising asylum numbers. "It is becoming apparent, however, that the migration numbers are increasing again significantly, especially on the Balkan route," Seehofer told the dpa news agency.

He therefore wanted to talk to the Union faction in the Bundestag. "We have to do something so that we do not get back into questionable proportions," warned Seehofer, who wants to retire from active politics at the end of the legislative period. "I am convinced that the issue of migration will still be relevant when I hand over my office," he added. Italy had also registered increased migratory pressure across the Mediterranean in the past few days.

Seehofer: AfD uses strong immigration
In this context, Seehofer also defended the annual maximum number of asylum seekers of 200,000 he had repeatedly called for in the past. "When there were significantly more, social and political problems arose." The Republicans have already used this, and "the AfD also made this their topic in 2015".

The head of the AfD parliamentary group in the Bundestag, Alexander Gauland, sees his party's warnings confirmed in view of Seehofer's statements. "The fact that Interior Minister Horst Seehofer is now warning of growing numbers of migrants shows that the refugee crisis is far from over," Gauland told Junge Freiheit.

One only has to look to Lampedusa or the Balkan route to see how serious the situation is. He did not believe that Seehofer could be expected to find solutions for this, explained Gauland. "As with the previous refugee crises and the numerous unsuccessful deportation offensives: apart from inconsequential announcements and references to the EU and a 'European solution', no effective measures are to be expected."

More than 35,000 initial applications since January
In April, the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (Bamf) recorded 8,060 initial applications for asylum. In March it was 9,053. This means that the total number of new asylum seekers so far this year has been 37,326. In 2020 there were 102,581 initial applications, in the previous year 142,509.

The record value is still officially set in 2016. At that time, the Bamf registered the applications of 722,370 newly arrived asylum seekers. This roughly corresponds to the population of Frankfurt am Main.

Source: Junge Freiheit