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Denmark to take 1,000 more refugees

Xinhua, September 17, 2015 Adjust font size:

The Danish government announced Thursday it would voluntarily take in an additional 1,000 refugees.

"In light of the extraordinary situation ... the government will offer to voluntarily take in a limited number of asylum-seekers, which is 1,000 people," Integration Minister Inger Stoejberg said at a joint press conference with Prime Minister Lars Loekke Rasmussen.

However, Stoejberg said the offer needed to be approved by the parliament first.

Also, the government has agreed to set aside 750 million Danish kroner (113 million U.S. dollars) for tackling the current refugee crisis.

One third of the funds will go to humanitarian aid in the countries surrounding Syria and the remaining funds are earmarked for joint European initiatives aimed at bringing the influx of refugees under control, the prime minister said.

Meanwhile, both Rasmussen and Stoejberg noted that Denmark has no plans to participate in the mandatory distribution of refugees at the EU level.

"There is a broad consensus that Denmark does not participate in a mandatory quota system," the prime minister said.

Rasmussen is scheduled to meet with other European leaders in Brussels later on Thursday to further discuss the current refugee crisis. Endi