Merz underscores Poland's role and criticizes Russian aggression
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, in his address on Wednesday, spoke about his visit to Warsaw on the day following his swearing-in. He explained that the visit was intended to demonstrate that Poland would play "the same central role" in German politics as France, its neighbour to the west.
Merz remarked that, 80 years after the end of World War II, freedom in Europe is more threatened than ever before. He sharply criticised Russia for "breaking all the rules." Russian soldiers are "killing and murdering," including civilians, he noted, adding that the outcome of the war in Ukraine would determine whether law or tyranny prevails in Europe.
"The stakes of this war are the peace architecture on our continent," emphasised the Chancellor. He quoted Helmut Kohl, who, during his farewell to Pope John Paul II in Berlin in 1993, said that Europe is "a community of values and culture."
Merz spoke out against a "peace which is in fact a diktat" for Ukraine. He assured that Germany, alongside its partners, including the USA, will strive for a just peace.
Merz speaks on migration
Addressing the issue of migration, Merz stated that Germany "has been, is, and will remain" a country welcoming immigrants. People who live here, work, and have obtained German citizenship are "an integral part" of German society, he added. The Chancellor noted that over the last 10 years there has been "excessive, uncontrolled migration" of low-skilled individuals entering the labour market and social insurance systems.
"We are organising migration by limiting the influx of migrants, increasing the number of returns, and streamlining the entire process. We are not acting alone; on the contrary, we are proceeding in accordance with international law," emphasised Merz.
"We agree with our neighbours that the external borders of the European Union should be consistently protected. We will support the countries located at these borders in carrying out this task. We are consistently implementing EU migration reform. We want to create conditions, together with our European partners, to conduct asylum proceedings in third countries," stated the Chancellor.
The CDU/CSU Christian Democratic bloc won the parliamentary elections on 23 February. The Bundestag elected Merz on 6 May, in the second vote, as the head of the CDU/CSU and SPD coalition government.
