Overview
- Chancellor Friedrich Merz said people persecuted for political or religious reasons will not be deported from Germany.
- He stated that refugees who fled civil wars are expected to return once those conflicts end.
- Merz announced plans to speak with the Syrian president about encouraging organized return and participation in reconstruction after the war.
- Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said during a visit to Damascus that returns to Syria are only very limited at present.
- Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt said integration and employment provide a path to remain and warned that voluntary trips home can cost refugees their protection status.