The Federal President of Germany Frank-Walter Steinmeier he advocated imposing a limit on the number of refugees his country accepts, but warned that there is no easy solution to the migration issue that has caused deadlocks and tensions in Europe for years.

“We need a limit on the number of arrivals, there is no question about that,” Mr. Steinmeier ruled on a program of the public television network ARD last Monday night.

He added that a comprehensive approach was needed, including stricter border controls at the German level and, at the EU level, faster deportation procedures for asylum seekers whose applications have either been rejected or have virtually no chance of being approved.

“If we can handle this arrangement, and thank God we are on the way to that, then the number of arrivals in Germany will decrease,” assured Mr. Steinmeier, adding that it is “hard work.”

Immigration has again become a hot-button issue in Germany, days before state elections in Hesse and Bavaria and as the far-right, anti-immigration Alternative for Germany (AfD) party nationally sees an alarming rise in opinion polls .

Chancellor Olaf Solz told the RND media group over the weekend that “the number of refugees seeking to come to Germany is too high at the moment.”

Opposition leader Friedrich Merz of the Christian Democrats caused an uproar and came under fire after his recent comments about asylum seekers who he said should have already been deported after their applications were rejected but “go to the dentist and get their teeth fixed”.

“I hope that after we put this behind us, a climate will be created again in which the democratic parties will be able to agree with each other,” said President Steinmeier, whose role is mostly symbolic but is considered important in shaping the social opinion, in yesterday’s interview.