Germany reaches deal to save ‘toxic’ coalition

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has resolved a dispute that threatened her coalition government.

Merkel had been embroiled in a row with Horst Seehofer, her rebellious interior minister, over how the country should handle immigration. Seehofer wanted a harder line and had threatened to resign over the issue but both parties have now agreed a deal that Merkel says is “a good compromise ... after a difficult struggle”.

Previous media report said the agreement includes the establishment of holding and processing centers near the German border with Austria, so people who have applied for asylum in other European Union countries can be blocked from entering Germany.

Merkel has been an enthusiastic supporter of refugees but her party now relies on the support of smaller parties after entering into the coalition government four months ago. The situation has led to her having to compromise on some issues, the BBC reported. The corporation said her hardline interior minister was prepared to bring down the government over the issue.

After the deal was struck, Seehofer said: “It’s worth fighting for your convictions.”

Germany will also now process the applications of asylum-seekers more quickly and repatriate those who are rejected.

AFP reported that Seehofer’s political party, the Christian Social Union, which is also known as the CSU, said the deal amounted to “a turn-around on asylum policy”.

The issue has been a hot topic following the recent arrival of 1 million migrants and refugees.

Refugee support group Pro Asyl said the spat is an example of a dispute between German political parties being played out “on the backs of those in need of protection”.

Seehofer’s CSU, which has its heartland in the German state of Bavaria, has traditionally backed Merkel’s party, the center-right Christian Democratic Union, which is known as the CDU.

Despite the deal, Merkel’s government is still under threat. Germany’s far-left Die Linke is now calling on the center-left Social Democrats party, which is known as the SPD and which is the third member of Merkel’s fragile coalition, to reject the compromise deal.

SPD leader Andrea Nahles has cautiously supported the deal, but says her party needs to discuss “many questions” with its experts.

Germany’s biggest-circulation publication Bild daily has described the dispute, which has dragged on for weeks, as “Merkel’s endgame” and predicted her 12 years in office may be coming to an end.

“The CDU and CSU have now struck a deal they could have reached three years ago,” the paper said. “It’s possible that this solution will work, but it’s certain that the mood in a coalition has never been as toxic as in this one.”