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Seehofer 'Kissed Europe Awake' to Migration Problem

© AP Photo / Maurizio Gambarini/dpaChancellor Angela Merkel, left, talks to Bavarian governor Horst Seehofer during talks on forming a new government in Berlin Thursday, Oct. 26 2017
Chancellor Angela Merkel, left, talks to Bavarian governor Horst Seehofer during talks on forming a new government in Berlin Thursday, Oct. 26 2017 - Sputnik International
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MOSCOW (Sputnik) - German Finance Minister Olaf Scholz has approved the creation of more than 1,600 jobs in the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) amid a recent scandal around refugee documents, Westdeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung (WAZ) reported on Friday.

A transfer of about 4,500 agency employees working under fixed-term employment agreements to contracts without date limits is also planned, the WAZ reported.

The measures are expected to be approved in the Bundestag in the near future, according to the WAZ.

READ MORE: Xenophobia, Hate Speech Widespread in EU Amid Migration Crisis — Report

Last week, German Interior Minister Horst Seehofer dismissed the head of the German migration department, Jutta Cordt, and her deputy Ralph Tiesler over the refugee documents scandal. Hans-Eckhard Sommer was appointed as the new BAMF chief.

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A few weeks ago, the BAMF appeared at the epicenter of a scandal when it was revealed that the agency's Bremen office had granted residence permits to at least 1,200 refugees who had no legislative grounds for obtaining asylum in Germany. Those granted residency included people considered to be "particularly dangerous" by the German Interior Ministry because of their ties to radical Islamist circles.

READ MORE: Germans Doubt Merkel's Ability to Find Migration Solution in 2 Weeks — Poll

In early June, Frank-Juergen Weise, who served as BAMF chief between 2015 and 2016, said that during his tenure, he had warned German Chancellor Angela Merkel about the excessive workload and demands being placed on the agency's staff.

Seehofer 'Kissed Europe Awake' to Migration Problem

Later in the day, German Interior Minister Horst Seehofer said he is glad to have alerted the European Union to the problem of migration with his announcement of the plan to ban entry to Germany for migrants already registered in other EU countries.

"I am glad I have kissed Europe awake. Suddenly, within only one week, there is a readiness in Europe to sit down together and solve the problem," Seehofer said in an interview with the Passauer Neue Presse newspaper published Friday.

READ MORE: Carpe Diem: Italy Moves to Seize Two German NGO-Run Migrant Rescue Ships

The German interior minister stressed that the country would not need to introduce any unilateral measures if a common European solution was found.

Seehofer, being Christian Social Union (CSU) leader, denied reports of any ultimatum given by his party to Merkel.

"Nonsense! There is no ultimatum. The chancellor asked the parliamentary faction of the Union to give her two weeks… The chancellor has set a deadline for herself," he said.

In an excerpt from an interview to the newspaper published Thursday, Seehofer stressed that he had the full support of his party.

"If the Chancellor's office is dissatisfied with the work of Interior Minister, then they should break up the coalition," Seehofer told the newspaper.

The CSU leader also noted that firing "a minister because they worry and care about the security and order of their country, that would be the first time in the world that was done."

German Economy Minister Siegmar Gabriel (C) peers between Chancellor Angela Merkel and Bavarian state premier and leader of the Christian Social Union (CSU) Horst Seehofer during a news conference at the Chancellery in Berlin, Germany, April 14, 2016. - Sputnik International
Seehofer Warns Merkel Against Firing Him, Threatens Coalition's Collapse
German Chancellor Angela Merkel is set to attend an informal EU meeting on migration on Sunday amid internal pressure as Seehofer warned earlier this week that the CSU he is chairing fully backs his proposal on the migration policy. The CSU is part of the ruling coalition, which includes Merkel's Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU) and the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD).

Merkel said earlier this week that CDU supports "an additional general plan on migration policy," but does not want to act unilaterally and against the interests of third countries.

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