Nancy Faeser did not want to answer questions on Thursday. The new German Interior Minister contented herself with a few sentences during her first appearance in Brussels. The SPD politician called it "scandalous and inhumane" how Belarusian ruler Alexander Lukashenko treats migrants. She said it was good that the EU has stood together so far. "For me, however, it is also important that legal standards are observed at the border," she added, and spoke out in favor of a Frontex mission and unrestricted access for aid organizations. This was not a new position; the old federal government also saw it that way. But it was an indication of the conflicts that continue to exist in the EU and that were aired by EU interior ministers on Thursday. Strictly speaking, it is a conflict primarily with Poland, which systematically keeps aid organizations away from the border and refuses to deploy the EU's border protection agency - in stark contrast to Lithuania, where Frontex officials have been deployed for months and asylum seekers are not turned away blanketly at the green border. The two countries also part ways when it comes to the EU Commission's latest proposal, which mandates an asylum procedure but provides relief for the countries concerned. Lithuania "very much welcomed how we can help them to cope with the situation," said Interior Commissioner Ylva Johansson after talks with the Lithuanian minister. Poland, on the other hand, rejects her proposal outright. It is possible to make exceptions to the asylum procedure, but not to contractual obligations, Johansson warned. "It is important to stick to the EU Treaty and fundamental rights." She indicated that if she did not, the Commission would launch another infringement procedure against Warsaw. Expedited procedure meets with outrage The Commission requires states to process asylum applications even when migrants are apprehended on the green border with Belarus. However, they are allowed to use an accelerated procedure in such cases, which is otherwise only used at airports. Under this procedure, applicants are interned in the transit area and are considered not to have entered the country for the duration of their procedure. They may only appeal a negative decision once. If the appeal is rejected by the court, they can be deported immediately. In Germany, this procedure is limited to 19 days. If no decision has been made by then, the person concerned may enter the country and undergo a regular asylum procedure with comprehensive legal protection. Lithuania, Latvia and Poland, on the other hand, are to be given one month to register and another four months to examine the asylum application. This is met with outrage on the left side of the European Parliament. SPD interior politician Birgit Sippel speaks of "extreme" and "relentless" measures that would be to the detriment of vulnerable people. Damian Boeselager from the Green parliamentary group sees a "high risk of arbitrary and mass internment." However, MEPs only have to be consulted, they are not allowed to co-decide, because the Commission relies on an exceptional case defined in the EU Treaty. In the Council of Ministers, a qualified majority is enough to approve the exceptions. Diplomats say that this would already be the case, only Poland is blocking it. Much reminiscent of 2015 But the states must decide whether they really want to overrule a country in this case, which should then apply the amended rules. The case is reminiscent of a vote on migrant distribution in the fall of 2015, at the height of refugee migration. At the time, Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic were outvoted, also on the basis of Article 78 of the EU Treaty. The states subsequently refused to implement the decision. They were later condemned for that by the European Court of Justice, but that didn't change anything. Johansson argued Thursday that the situation is now quite different. After all, she said, the states on the border with Belarus themselves had approached the Commission and asked it to explore legal options. She therefore expected the Council to decide accordingly. It remained open what the new German government's position would be. After all, it was the first time in a long time that Germany was represented at ministerial level at all. Faeser's predecessor, Horst Seehofer, had already lost interest in European meetings at the end of the German Council presidency a year ago and was subsequently represented by state secretaries.

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