Overview
- Wadephul, fresh from a visit to heavily damaged areas near Damascus, said people could barely live there in dignity and questioned short‑term large‑scale voluntary returns.
- In a CDU/CSU meeting he likened conditions in Syria to Germany in 1945 and insisted, "I am no wimp," remarks that drew sharp internal criticism, including from the Junge Union.
- Government spokesman Stefan Kornelius said the chancellor stands behind the foreign minister, distanced Merz from the historical comparison, and urged a calm, lawful handling of return procedures.
- Berlin reiterated its policy goal of enabling returns and targeted deportations, initially for offenders and security threats, but stressed that legal and material prerequisites must be met.
- Reports of internal pushback up to covert resignation calls were played down by the spokesman as a misreading, even as media scrutiny of the coalition’s Syria stance continues.