Germany Nears Decision on Migrant Return Centers Outside the EU

German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt (CSU) has announced that key decisions on establishing a return center for rejected asylum seekers outside the European Union will be made soon. In an interview with Deutsche Welle on Thursday, Dobrindt said the federal government intends to reach an agreement with a group of “like-minded” EU countries “in the coming weeks on which country outside the European Union we will first enter into talks with.”

‍

When asked which third countries were being considered, the interior minister said: “We are currently working with a group of member states within Europe to clarify the necessary questions about which third countries to engage in discussions with.” He added that he did not want to “leave this question to the European Commission.” “There is a group of like-minded countries that want to organize this now,” he said.

‍

Dobrindt acknowledged that establishing so-called return centers outside the EU would be “challenging.” However, he said the legal framework had been put in place, adding: “That means we want to make this option available in 2026.” The interior minister reaffirmed his commitment to a generally restrictive migration policy. “We will continue this tough course,” Dobrindt said. “We will also continue it in step with our European partners.”

‍

The European Commission has criticized Germany’s position. EU Commissioner for Home Affairs Magnus Brunner called on the German government to end its border controls in the foreseeable future. “These are temporary measures that member states can use, and Germany is currently making use of them. And temporary means time-limited,” Brunner said on Thursday in the Berlin Playbook podcast by Politico. On May 7 last year, Dobrindt ordered intensified controls and pushbacks at all nine of Germany’s land borders with neighboring countries.

‍

Brunner also urged swift implementation of the new European asylum system, known as GEAS. The EU’s external borders must be better protected “so that internal border controls are no longer necessary,” he said. “Schengen is one of the greatest achievements of the European Union.”

‍