To put that in perspective, in 2024 nearly 230,000 people applied for asylum in Germany for the first time, according to European statistics. Germany continues to take in the vast majority of people seeking asylum in the country.
The reality is that German authorities remain reluctant to stop asylum seekers at its borders in large numbers because it could spark cascading border closures that would cause chaos and stoke anger. Legal scholars and left-leaning German opposition parties also argue that returning asylum seekers at the national border violates European laws.
“We’re confronted with a new dimension, because a state is openly saying it’s breaking European law,” said Constantin Hruschka, an expert in migration law. “There is a certain outrage from neighboring states that we did not see before.”
Dobrindt, however, argues that Germany is within its rights to suspend European law in order to safeguard internal security and “counteract [the] excessive demands” on Germany’s asylum system.
A recent episode at a German-Polish bridge crossing underscored the complicated reality the German government now faces in attempting to implement its border crackdown.
Days after Dobrindt announced the increased checks, two Afghan asylum seekers tried to enter Germany from Poland. The German police attempted to return them, according to a Spiegel report that cited police documents. But the Polish authorities refused to take the Afghans, so the German police took them to a reception center in Germany.
