Row Over Refugees' Status Reopens Divisions In German Government
By Caroline Copley
4 hours ago
BERLIN (Reuters) - Just two days after resolving a coalition row over how to handle a record influx of refugees, Germany's ruling parties are embroiled in another spat over whether to limit the asylum rights of refugees from Syria.
The government was forced to clarify on Friday that its asylum policy for refugees from Syria remained unchanged after the interior minister said they would receive a modified refugee status and be barred from having family members join them.
But the comments made by Thomas de Maiziere in a radio interview have reopened a rift between Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democrats (CSU), its Bavarian sister party (CSU) and their Social Democrat (SPD) coalition partners.
On Saturday, Ralf Stegner, deputy chairman of the SPD, accused the CDU of making half-baked proposals instead of implementing the decisions agreed on by the coalition.
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