What there was to say after this second “refugee summit” was already known before the first summit: how important more living space would be, that there must be more returns, better protection of the EU’s external borders, better distribution of refugees in the EU, more money, more staff, less immigration.
None of this can be done overnight, but it certainly won’t go faster by repeating it like a mantra from peak to peak. The outcome has not changed since the first summit in October 2022. There is no limit to the influx, on the contrary, the numbers will probably continue to rise.
Instead, the federal government is looking for the second time to use federal real estate. That’s a little help with accommodation, but it’s not a way out of the housing shortage, and certainly not out of the crisis.
Garlands, adjournments, banalities
Interior Minister Nancy Faeser now came up with all sorts of organizational initiatives, including a “dashboard” from pandemic times and working groups between the federal, state and local governments. Their second summit also hatched a “firm schedule.” At Easter, the chancellor should consult with the prime minister again. Such garlands, adjournments and banalities must have the effect of delaying tactics on the municipalities.
No movement can be seen in all important points. The federal government stubbornly refuses to talk to the municipalities about money. At the EU level, Berlin shows no sign of success in achieving a fairer distribution. An improvement in returns is not to be expected for the time being, since negotiations with important countries of origin are only just beginning.
The German government owes the only progress, stronger control of the EU borders, not to Olaf Scholz, as Nancy Faeser said, but to the “right-wing” governments she has criticized. The German government, on the other hand, is acting according to the motto: somehow things will go well.