According to Friedrich Merz, following the end of the civil war, Syrians no longer have grounds to seek asylum in Germany—they will now be encouraged to return home and take part in rebuilding their country.
Over 14 years of conflict, Germany has accepted more Syrian refugees than any other EU nation. However, the chancellor and his allies argue that the situation has changed since the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime 11 months ago.
On Tuesday, November 4, Merz said he expects a large share of the more than one million Syrians living in Germany to return voluntarily. “There are no longer valid grounds for granting asylum in Germany, and therefore we can begin the process of repatriation,” he said. Those who refuse to go back may face deportation “in the near future.”
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His remarks contrasted with the position of Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul, who after visiting Damascus last week expressed doubts that many Syrians would want to return, given the scale of destruction and instability that make a dignified life impossible. Until recently, Wadephul had taken a tougher line, supporting the government’s efforts to counter the rise of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD).
His shift in tone drew criticism from fellow members of the Christian Democratic Union, who warned that such statements could discourage returns by those needed to rebuild Syria.
Meanwhile, politicians have been reluctant to discuss the possible consequences of deportations for Germany itself: hundreds of thousands of Syrians have successfully integrated, learned the language, and are filling labor shortages in a country with a rapidly aging population. More than 7,000 Syrian doctors now work in Germany—often in rural regions that have long suffered from a lack of specialists.
Of the roughly 1.3 million Syrians living in Germany, almost a quarter were born there. Many have obtained citizenship, but the majority still hold only temporary residence permits. In the first half of this year, about a thousand people returned home through government-assisted programs.
The issue of Syrian refugees has returned to the political spotlight ahead of regional elections in five federal states, where the AfD is competing with the Christian Democrats and, for the first time, could claim leadership in several regions.
The debate over refugee policy coincided with the arrest in Berlin of a 22-year-old Syrian suspected of plotting an Islamist terrorist attack. The incident was the latest in a series of events that have heightened public concern about security and migration.
Wadephul’s remarks expressing sympathy for Syrians were immediately criticized by AfD co-chair Alice Weidel, who called them “a slap in the face to the victims of Islamist violence.”
On Monday, Merz announced that he had invited Syria’s interim president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, to Germany to discuss the deportation of convicted Syrians—a topic that has long been contentious in the country. Wadephul, for his part, sought to ease tensions, emphasizing that he remains actively involved in implementing the government’s shared goal of increasing deportations of migrants, including those from Syria.