- Title: Germany still 'safe country' for foreigners, migrants - Merkel
- Date: 21st June 2018
- Summary: MADABA, JORDAN (JUNE 21, 2018) (REUTERS) ***WARNING CONTAINS FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY*** GERMAN CHANCELLOR, ANGELA MERKEL, AND DIRECTOR OF GERMAN LANGUAGE CENTRE, DOROTHEA JECHT, AT A TOWN HALL MEETING WITH STUDENTS AT THE GERMAN JORDANIAN UNIVERSITY MERKEL LISTENING TO STUDENTS MERKEL AND JECHT ON STAGE (SOUNDBITE) (German) GERMAN CHANCELLOR ANGELA MERKEL, SAYING (ACCORDING TO OFFICIAL TRANSLATION ON SITE): "I believe that on the whole you need not be afraid. Obviously, I cannot exclude that we sometimes have people who may make disparaging remarks, but I think that could happen anywhere. But on the whole I would say Germany continues to be a safe country, although there have been instances where foreign citizens were subjected to accusations and attacks, but unfortunately there have also been instances where refugees murdered young girls, for example, so we've had such cases from both sides." JOURNALISTS TAKING NOTES MERKEL SPEAKING TO STUDENT (SOUNDBITE) (German) GERMAN CHANCELLOR ANGELA MERKEL, SAYING (ACCORDING TO OFFICIAL TRANSLATION ON SITE): "We also have protests [in Germany], maybe less so recently because right now we are in very comfortable economic situation. But sometimes there are situations where I believe tough political decisions have to be taken. The question is now, and I am not so familiar with the details, was it a balanced tax increase? Or did people have the impression that the wrong people are adversely affected by this, because there are quite a number of people here who do not have so much money. If for example, subsidies are cut it, it is a difficult situation." VARIOUS OF STUDENT ASKING A QUESTION VARIOUS OF SESSION
- Embargoed: 5th July 2018 10:18
- Keywords: Jordan Germany Merkel univeristy students refugees migrants europe
- Location: MADABA, JORDAN
- City: MADABA, JORDAN
- Country: Jordan
- Topics: Diplomacy/Foreign Policy,Government/Politics
- Reuters ID: LVA0018L9535Z
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Thursday (June 21) that her country remained safe for foreigners and migrants.
Speaking at a town hall meeting with students at the German Jordanian University near Amman, Merkel reassured a Jordanian student that she "need not be afraid" of going to Germany.
Earlier this week, Merkel pushed other European Union leaders to further curb immigration and restrict movement of asylum seekers within the European Union, to help keep her ruling coalition from crumbling at home.
Her coalition partner, the Christian Social Union (CSU) from the southern German state of Bavaria, has said it would bar from Germany all asylum-seekers registered in other EU states unless a summit of all EU leaders on June 28-29 agrees a bloc-wide deal to share them out evenly.
The chancellor added that she recognised that Jordan's recent wave of protests, where thousands took to the streets against a series of IMF-guided tax rises and led to the resignation of the government, were due to a "difficult" economic situation in the country.
"The question is now, and I am not so familiar with the details, was it a balanced tax increase?" Merkel said. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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