“We expect people of Turkish origin, who have been living in Germany for a long time to demonstrate a high level of loyalty to our country, ” she added.
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Merkel said she was hopeful that European Union members would reach an agreement on outstanding questions arising from the migrant crisis, one of which is how to fairly distribute asylum-seekers among all the bloc’s 28 member states.
Her comments come nearly a year after Merkel’s decision to allow hundreds of thousands of migrants stuck in other European countries to come to Germany.
The head of the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees said in an interview published Sunday that the number of people who came to Germany during the height of the refugee crisis previous year was lower than previously thought. In a survey published on Sunday, the Bild am Sonntag newspaper said 50% of the 501 people surveyed said they opposed a fresh term for her when the country goes to the polls in October 2017. Ms. Merkel, who has been in office since 2005 at the head of the conservative CDU party, is now serving a third.
Sigmar Gabriel, Germany’s vice chancellor, said the influx was still a record number and that Merkel had “underestimated” the challenge of integrating new arrivals and finding them jobs.
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German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Sunday refused to reveal her decision regarding potential run for the fourth chancellor’s term.
