Germany to Negotiate Syrian Refugees' Return

The German Ministry of Interior is reportedly seeking to negotiate with the new Syrian authorities to facilitate the return of hundreds of thousands of Syrian refugees residing in Germany.

According to the German newspaper Bild, Interior Minister Nancy Faeser is planning to visit Syria to discuss the issue of refugee repatriation with Syria's transitional president, Ahmad Al-Shara.

A spokesperson from the German Interior Ministry confirmed that they are in contact with the Syrian transitional government to address the matter of returning Syrian refugees from Germany. However, the ministry declined to comment on Faeser's specific plans to visit Syria.

The report highlights that approximately 974,000 Syrians currently reside in Germany. A large-scale return of refugees would significantly impact Germany’s social welfare system, as around 512,000 Syrians receive financial aid estimated at 4 billion euros annually, averaging 664 euros per person per month.

Earlier, Minister Faeser stated that some Syrians who fled to Germany might have to return under certain conditions.

Official data from the Interior Ministry reveals that around 975,000 Syrians currently live in Germany, most of whom arrived after 2015 due to the Syrian civil war.

Over 300,000 of them hold subsidiary protection status, granted due to the general war conditions rather than individual persecution.

Recently, Germany's Federal Office for Migration and Refugees announced a temporary suspension of asylum decisions for Syrian applicants as part of the ongoing evaluation of the situation in Syria.