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Germany should send clearer signals in refugee crisis: Austrian chancellor

Xinhua, March 31, 2016 Adjust font size:

Austrian Chancellor Werner Faymann on Wednesday urged Germany to send clearer signals as other countries attempt to tackle the refugee crisis.

In an interview with the Krone newspaper, Faymann said it is "wrong" that somebody should be rewarded for paying people smugglers to get to Germany and then obtain full social supports, while others waiting for legal entry into the country via the UNHCR "get nothing."

In this context, he warned that the Brenner Pass at the shared border with Italy could become a site with new problem as border closures elsewhere make the route through Italy more appealing to refugees.

This would lead to a very difficult "political, organizational, and police" situation requiring a similar solution to the intensified controls at the Spielfeld border crossing, he added.

Faymann said Germany, in particular, has obligations here.

Should the government there choose to accept 500,000 or more refugees, it is "their business." "But then they must go get these people where they are located, before they attempt an illegal trip," he added. Endit