BERLIN, July 02 (Reuters): German Chancellor Angela Merkel made a last-ditch effort to resolve a row over migrant policy with her conservative allies on Monday.
A top minister threatened to resign, casting doubt on whether her coalition can survive.
Interior Minister Horst Seehofer offered to quit his cabinet post and the chairmanship of Bavaria’s Christian Social Union (CSU) at a party meeting on Sunday.
It was unclear whether this was high-risk brinkmanship aimed at making Merkel back down or whether he has simply had enough.
The CSU had threatened to impose new controls at the German border this week if they deemed that agreements and proposals Merkel brought back from a European Union summit were insufficient to ease the migrant burden.
Merkel's Christian Democrats (CDU) relies on the CSU to maintain power through a coalition, also including the Social Democrats (SPD), formed three months ago after an election in September.
Germany's political crisis is the latest sign of a growing divide across the EU between those who want to maintain open borders and those who want to restrict the number of migrants entering the bloc.
The ructions in Berlin were putting pressure on the euro early on Monday while Germany's top share index opened more than one per cent lower.
Officials from the Bavaria-based CSU accused Merkel of rejecting several compromise proposals made by Seehofer to heal the rift with her own CDU.
Seehofer, who has demanded that Merkel toughen her open-doors refugee policy, told colleagues on Sunday that in spite of the measures agreed with EU leaders, he saw no alternative to turning some migrants back at the border. Merkel rejects this.
In an extremely fluid situation, Merkel and Seehofer are due to meet later in the day and before that, a joint session of the parliamentary groups of the CSU and CDU is due to take place, although there was some doubt if it would go ahead.
Crucially for Merkel, CDU lawmakers are backing her - so far.
© 2024 - All Rights with The Financial Express
