Merz calls migration one of the biggest EU problems - now the right to asylum is up for debate
Quick Look
- Despite falling migration numbers and new EU asylum rules, Chancellor Friedrich Merz still sees a great need for action in migration policy.
- At the EU summit in Brussels, he emphasized that irregular migration was one of Europe's biggest problems.
- The debate was triggered by the migration crisis in Ceuta, in which around 80,000 migrants from Morocco arrived in the Spanish exclave and at least 140 people died.
AI-generated summary
Why It Matters
The migration crisis in Ceuta in July 2024, in which an estimated 80,000 migrants from Morocco entered the Spanish exclave and at least 140 people died, has reignited the EU migration debate. Spain responded by legalizing about 500,000 irregular migrants, sparking criticism from Austria and Denmark. The EU Commission planned a crisis response framework for cases in which migration is used as a weapon. Since March 2025, Poland has temporarily restricted the right to asylum at the border with Belarus.
Despite falling migration numbers and new EU asylum rules: In the opinion of Federal Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU), there is still a lot to do when it comes to migration. “Almost every head of state and government in the European Union now sees it this way: we have a massive problem that is putting a significant burden on our societies,” said Merz at the EU summit in Brussels. He expressly agrees with this. “Irregular migration is one of the biggest problems we have in Europe.”
Merz commented on the topic on the sidelines of a debate about the lessons from the migration crisis in Ceuta. At the end of July, around 80,000 migrants were estimated to have arrived in the Spanish exclave from Morocco. According to the government in Madrid, most of the arrivals returned voluntarily to Morocco within a very short period of time. At least 140 people died trying to reach Ceuta. Aid organizations assume a significantly higher number.
The EU migration rules do not actually provide for a complete suspension of the right to asylum, citing the non-refoulement principle. In simple terms, the basic rule states that a state may not return or deport a person to a country where there is a risk of persecution, torture or other treatment that violates human rights.
Von der Leyen had made an advance to Ceuta
In mid-September, the EU Commission proposed a new European crisis response framework. According to Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, this should allow temporary flexibility in asylum rules if migration movements are used as a weapon against the EU. There are currently no further details about the announced proposal. According to von der Leyen, he should arrive by the end of the year.
In Poland, the right to apply for international protection has been temporarily restricted at the border with Belarus since March 2025. Warsaw justifies this with the instrumentalization of migration by Belarus and the resulting threat to state security.
Heads of state and government are arguing about migration again
After migration policy was only discussed in passing at many previous EU summits, EU Council President António Costa gave the topic more time this time. The debate also revealed conflicts again at the meeting.
The move by Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez's left-wing Spanish minority government to legalize around 500,000 irregular migrants who had previously been living in the country without valid documents was particularly criticized.
Austria's Chancellor Stocker criticized that this did not send a good sign from Spain. “I don’t know whether Ceuta would have happened without this signal,” said the ÖVP politician. Denmark's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen also criticized the approach, without directly naming Spain.
Asked about the criticism, Sánchez told journalists that the measure was not unusual. Many other countries would also issue work permits to many of these migrants, on a similar scale - even if they would not use the term legalization.
French President Emmanuel Macron complained that the debate over migration had been divisive and warned of dehumanization. Ceuta was above all a human drama. Europe should not forget this as a continent of humanists, said Macron.
End in sight in the dispute between Italy and Spain
In the dispute between Italy and Spain triggered by the Ceuta crisis, after more than two months there are signs of some relaxation and an end to the mutual border controls. According to information from both capitals, the interior ministers of the two EU partners want to try to find a solution next week.
The controls contradict the rules of the Schengen area, according to which there are generally no controls on persons at the internal borders. When introducing border controls, Rome argued that the borders needed to be protected because of the rush of migrants to Ceuta. However, there is no evidence that anyone made their way to Italy from there.
Irregular border crossings into the EU will continue to decline this year. The border protection agency Frontex counted around 74,000 unauthorized entries in the first eight months, 35 percent fewer than in the same period last year.
What to Watch
AI outlook — possibilities, not facts
Italy and Spain will reach an agreement next week to lift mutual border controls.
Likely · Within days
The EU Commission will present its European crisis response framework by the end of the year.
Likely · Within months
Open Questions
- When will the proposed European crisis response framework be finally presented to the EU Commission?
- What concrete measures will Italy and Spain agree to resolve their dispute over border controls?
- How will the legalization of 500,000 migrants in Spain affect migration numbers and integration in the long term?
- What specific security concerns are causing Poland to restrict asylum rights at the border with Belarus?
