In a major shift that signals a stark change in Germany’s approach to immigration, the new government under Chancellor Friedrich Merz has ordered an immediate tightening of border controls. As of May 7, undocumented migrants will be turned away at Germany’s land borders, fulfilling a central campaign promise that propelled Merz’s Christian Democratic Union (CDU) to power.

The announcement marks one of the most decisive and controversial immigration policy changes since the height of Europe’s 2015–2016 refugee crisis, when then-Chancellor Angela Merkel opened Germany’s borders to over a million asylum seekers. Merz’s newly appointed Interior Minister, Alexander Dobrindt, wasted no time in formalizing the new approach, issuing an executive order that will fundamentally alter the way Germany handles undocumented migrants.

In a letter obtained by German media outlet Bild, Dobrindt instructed Federal Police Chief Dieter Romann to withdraw Merkel’s 2015 verbal directive, effectively nullifying the policy that made Germany the epicenter of Europe’s migrant influx nearly a decade ago.

“I hereby withdraw the verbal instruction given… on 13 September 2015,” Dobrindt wrote, referring directly to the moment Merkel famously declared, “Wir schaffen das” (“We can manage this”), opening Germany’s borders during a humanitarian emergency.

While Merkel’s decision was initially praised by human rights advocates and international organizations, it soon became one of the most polarizing topics in German politics. Critics argued that her open-door policy had overwhelmed local communities, strained social services, and fueled the rise of anti-immigration political movements like the Alternative for Germany........

© Blitz