Recent statements by the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party have sparked controversy. Alice Weidel, co-chair of the AfD, which is listed as a far-right party in some Länder, notably stated that if her party came to power, “all Syrians should leave this country, without exception,” on the grounds that the reason that justified their asylum claims would have disappeared.
In response to these statements, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said, during a speech to members of his party, the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), in Berlin, that Germany needs immigrants, emphasising that the country would remain “a country of immigration.”
“There is no room for xenophobia in our country,” Merz said, noting that essential sectors and services in Germany could not continue to operate without the presence of immigrants.
The German chancellor explained that “no hospital, no nursing home, and no construction site” could function properly without immigrants, adding: “Nothing will work if we do not have immigrants.”
Merz also stressed that some immigrants have lived and worked in Germany for several decades and have integrated into society, arguing that these are precisely the immigrants the country needs.
In this context, he insisted on his rejection of hate speech, stating that Germany needed these immigrants and that “without immigrants, our economy will stop.”
Merz reaffirmed that Germany “will remain a country of immigration,” underscoring that immigration remains necessary for German society and the economy.
At the same time, the German chancellor drew a distinction between two types of immigration, stating that his country did not wish for “immigration into social protection systems,” but rather “immigration into the labor market.”
Merz’s statements thus reflect a willingness to highlight the role played by immigrants in the labor market and in various sectors of life in Germany, while stressing the need to prioritize employment-related immigration rather than dependence on social protection systems.
