The refugee crisis can only be resolved through improved European cooperation, says Federal Development Minister Gerd Müller. Europe must act urgently, he added. Federal Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier has called for support to help Libya to rebuild its state. A fund for emergency measures is to be put in place.
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In view of the influx of refugees heading for Europe, Federal Development Minister Gerd Müller sees a need for urgent action. "Many people have no other option but to flee if they want to survive," he said to the German newspaper the Rheinische Post. "Most people do not want to leave their homes. But if they have no prospects there, and see on their smartphone the quality of life we enjoy here, the incentive to flee is huge," he said.
That is why Europe must act urgently. "We absolutely need a pan-European Marshall Plan to address the refugee crisis, with an EU Commissioner responsible solely for refugees, he declared. "It is a disgrace that Europe cannot cooperate better on addressing the refugee crisis. The European Union should look at the example of the United Nations." The UN Refugee Agency operates extremely effectively and helps, he said.
The Federal Development Minister pointed in particular to the fragile situation in Libya. "According to our information, in Libya alone between 100,000 and 200,000 Africans from sub-Saharan states are waiting for a crossing to Europe. The trafficker mafia is in full swing there," he stressed. That is why is it so important to take preventive action.
Federal Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier also declared that Germany must support Libya’s Government of National Accord with reconstruction. "In the chaos of civil war, Libya has become a playground for criminal human traffickers and IS terrorist groups, who are a threat to us in Europe too," he said to the newspaper, the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. In the long term, an effective Libyan state is needed.
Federal Development Minister Gerd Müller praised the Federal Foreign Minister’s efforts to stabilise the Libyan government. "The Federal Foreign Minister is working tirelessly to stabilise the new Libyan government. The government needs authority, institutions and police training, and the coastguard’s capacities need to be developed," he stressed.
The German government will be helping to stabilise Libya with emergency measures, announced Sebastian Fischer, the deputy Federal Foreign Office spokesperson at the government press conference. "We are offering to set up a fund for emergency measures to stabilise Libya with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)." A similar programme has proved very effective in Iraq. "We are thus following a blueprint to give the people in Libya a chance to regain their trust in their state and to see a peace dividend," said Sebastian Fischer.