Baerbock clearly distances herself from the "Rwanda model" in Rwanda
Baerbock referred to the "high hurdles" for such a third-country regulation, as demanded by the CDU, for example. At the moment, "several courts are working intensively on what the legal requirements are". In Kigali, Baerbock was "somewhat surprised" that "conservative politicians in particular" were calling for refugees from Europe to be brought to countries such as Rwanda.
Conservative forces in particular had always called for a common European migration policy, said Baerbock. They must now make a constructive contribution to ensuring that the current proposals receive a majority in the European Parliament. "In my view, it would also be in the interests of the German migration debate if the conservatives finally put their full weight behind this - in the European Parliament, but also in the German debate," Baerbock added. The demand to adopt the Rwanda model is only a "theoretical discussion".
The agreement between the UK and Rwanda provides for irregular arrivals to be sent from the UK to the African country in future without their asylum application being examined. A return to the UK is not planned. The British government hopes that this will have a deterrent effect on migrants.
In order to conclude the agreement with Kigali, the British parliament declared Rwanda a safe country of origin last week on the initiative of the government. The law that was passed also provides for parts of the British Human Rights Act not to be applied to deportations in order to restrict the legal process for migrants. Critics see London's action as a violation of international law.
Following the meeting with Baerbock, Rwandan Foreign Minister Biruta expressed his openness to extending asylum cooperation, which has so far been limited to the UK, to other countries. When asked whether Rwanda would also be prepared to cooperate with Germany in this way, Biruta said: "Rwanda is ready to work with any partner to solve the global migration crisis."
Biruta described criticism of the agreement with the UK as "unfair for Rwanda". "The global migration system is not working," he said. "Rwanda is trying to contribute to a solution." His country is interested in working together with other countries. He does not fear that newly arrived migrants will destabilize Rwanda: "We are implementing mechanisms to integrate asylum seekers into Rwandan society."
The third-country proposal is also the core of the migration concept in the draft of the new basic program presented by the CDU a few days ago. CDU interior expert Alexander Throm (CDU) called on Baerbock to explore the possibilities of asylum cooperation during her visit to Rwanda.
"Rwanda would be a possible partner for us, where asylum procedures could be carried out outside Europe," Throm told the AFP news agency. The CDU/CSU parliamentary group's spokesperson on domestic affairs recalled that the German government "expressly promised to examine such a third-country solution" at the federal-state summit in November.
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- Baerbock firmly opposes implementing the "Rwanda model" in the European Parliament.
- Despite CDU's push for high hurdles in third-country regulations, Baerbock acknowledges several courts scrutinizing the legal prerequisites.
- Baerbock was taken aback by conservative politicians advocating for European refugees to relocate to countries like Rwanda.
- The UK-Rwanda agreement entails relocating unauthorized migrants to Africa without assessing their asylum claims, with no return to the UK planned.
- Rwanda has been declared a safe country of origin by the UK parliament, enabling deportations while restricting legal proceedings for migrants.
- Rwandan Foreign Minister Biruta expressed his country's readiness to expand asylum cooperation beyond the UK, including potential partnerships with Germany.
- Critics view the UK's actions as a breach of international law, while Biruta defends Rwanda's effort to tackle the global migration crisis.
- Alexander Throm, the CDU's interior expert, suggests Rwanda as a potential location for conducting asylum procedures outside Europe, aligning with the CDU's draft migration concept.
- In November, the German government pledged to examine third-country solutions, paving the way for exploration of asylum cooperation with Rwanda, in line with Throm's suggestion.
Source: www.stern.de
