Germany Sees Migrant Decline as Balkan Route Remains Closed

The number of migrants arriving in Germany has been decreasing since Western Balkan states sealed their borders, German media report.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) – Between March 18 and March 23 German police recorded a total of 808 incoming refugees, the Bild newspaper said on Friday, which is an average of 135 people arriving per day. Overall, nearly 109,000 migrants have arrived in Germany since the start of the year, according to police.

According to Bild, if this tendency continues, the total number of migrants to have arrived in Germany in 2016 would be 500,000. This is a sharp decrease compared to last year that saw nearly 2 million migrants arriving in Germany, the newspaper said.

The fall in the number of refugees coming to Germany is partially due to the closure of the Western Balkan route, Bild said.

Europe has been beset by a massive refugee crisis, with hundreds of thousands of undocumented migrants fleeing their home countries in the Middle East and North Africa to escape violence and poverty and seeking better life conditions in Europe. Many of the migrants have been taking the Western Balkan route, which crosses Greece.

Last month, Macedonia refused entry to incoming migrants on its border with Greece after other countries along the Balkan migration route closed their borders, including Serbia, Croatia, Slovenia and Austria.