BERLIN
The number of refugees arriving in Germany in March was the lowest since June 2014, after Balkan countries closed their borders and the EU stepped up cooperation with Turkey.
German Interior Minister Thomas De Maiziere said in Berlin on Friday that nearly 20,000 asylum seekers arrived in Germany last month, a steep drop from 60,000 in February and 90,000 in January.
De Maiziere said the recent numbers show “a very good start” for the EU-Turkey agreement, but he also expressed caution and refrained from making predictions for the year.
“Despite this possible development in the first quarter of 2016, it is still too early to make a projection for the whole year,” he told a press conference.
He warned about possible new migration routes being used by human smugglers and possible hurdles in implementation of the agreement to address the refugee crisis.
Germany was overwhelmed last year with taking in a record 1.1 million asylum-seekers, and the government came under widespread criticism for not closing its borders to migrants. agencies