Bild criticize the foreign minister after his remarks regarding the return of Syrians in Germany to Syria

Peter Tiede, senior columnist for the German Bild newspaper, criticized Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul’s (of the Christian Democratic Union) statement that the scale of destruction in Syria makes it impossible for Syrian refugees to return at the moment, describing it as an insult and unacceptable.

The writer stated that Wadephul, whom Chancellor Friedrich Merz appointed as foreign minister despite his limited international experience, proved during his visit to Syria this week why many consider his appointment a mistake.

After a brief tour there, the minister declared that he had never witnessed such a scale of destruction, adding that the return of Syrian refugees in the near future isn’t possible.

Tide believes this statement not only reflects a lack of political vision but also contradicts the government’s own policies, which are currently discussing the return of refugees to Syria and Afghanistan.

He added that this stance gives asylum courts in Germany a new pretext to halt deportations, sarcastically remarking, “The judges will now simply say: ‘The minister himself said that return is impossible!”

The writer strongly criticized the minister’s logic, saying: “Then who will rebuild Syria? Who will make it beautiful and suitable so that it meets the standards of the German minister?”

He added that Germany itself was completely devastated after World War II, and cities like Cologne, Dresden, and Berlin were in ruins, yet millions of Germans and refugees returned to their country and rebuilt everything with their own hands.

“Tede continued: Was Germany in 1945 in a better state than Syria is today? Of course not. Yet everyone returned and rebuilt their country. So how can rebuilding Syria today be considered (unacceptable) to Syrians?”

The writer argued that Minister Vadhful had once again proven that he had failed in his mission, noting that China had recently cancelled his planned visit due to “a lack of suitable dates,” and that during the Gaza crisis he was merely a “spectator” without an effective role.

Tiede concluded his article by saying that Wadephul was supposed to represent a new beginning in German foreign policy after the era of the previous foreign minister from the Green Party, but instead he demonstrated a clear political ineptitude, and his statement on Syria is the biggest proof of that.

In related context, the German Interior Ministry said that Syrian refugees traveling to their homeland would lead to them losing their right to protection in Germany in the future, stressing its refusal to allow temporary visits to Syria without this affecting their asylum status.

The German news agency DPA quoted a ministry spokesman as saying that the Interior Ministry, after careful consideration, decided not to allow short trips to Syria without repercussions on the granted protection status.

The spokesman explained that any Syrian who proves that he has visited his country of origin will automatically lose his right to protection, because the reasons on which the asylum application was based no longer exist, noting that there are very limited exceptions that are restricted to special humanitarian cases, such as visiting a first-degree relative who is dying.