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Europe's refugee crisis simmers despite efforts to solve it

21 Comments
By GEIR MOULSON

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21 Comments
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Why aren't the wealthy oil-rich countries of the Middle East helping the Syrians and offering them shelter? Turkey has taken in millions, also Jordan, but neither enjoys vast oil wealth. Erdogan recently proposed giving Turkish citizenship to the Syrians....most Turks were furious and will fight that idea. Globalization is an assault on people's desire for a national identity and to be tied together by heritage. Saudi Arabia? Kuwait? Qatar? The United Arab Emirates? Why aren't they pressured to help? Is it because the world only expects good behavior from whites with a European heritage? The Syrians are the only true refugees, everyone else (including the Nigerians) are heading to Europe for the economics and welfare benefits.

11 ( +11 / -0 )

crazyjoe, Good questions. this is an insane situation, priming europe for major difficulties and bloodshed for years into the future.

4 ( +8 / -4 )

"Is it because the world only expects good behavior from whites with a European heritage?"

Yes, and it's also German guilt from WW2, even though the rest of Europe is also forced to pay the price for German arrogance and misdeeds. Sound familiar?

Germany continues to throw its weight around, ignoring sovereignty issues of its Euro neighbors. History repeats itself.

4 ( +9 / -5 )

What efforts? Stoking the war in Syria? Arming the Saudis in Yemen? Just walking away from Eritrea and Somalia? Maintaining massive agricultural subsidies and trade barriers so less developed countries can't make money from agriculture and are forced to import capital goods? The way this has been dealt with is another typical round of self interest coupled with hypocrisy and a good sprinkling of daft liberal values thrown in to allow us to wring our hands and moralise. The UK will soon come to celebrate not being a part of this mess anymore. I see Sarko is already saying UK should take responsibility for the refuges in Calais.

2 ( +4 / -2 )

Come on JT! You really think it is incorrect to have an opinion which is anti Muslim immigration? That is what the article doesn't say does it Muslim migration! But that is what it is! How many Muslims kill other members of their own family under the tenents of Islam? The number is in the thousands!!!!!!

Everyone on this forum should understand that honor killings are legal in Syria! And ignored in Pakistan

Islamic countries!

Let's here it from those that believe that a woman seeking her own husband should be legally murdered?

Nobody right!

In the liberal west we are now seeing idealistic religiously inspired (by the Muslim faith) individuals attacking the natives for a myriad of anti Islamfic behaviors!.

Merkel invited a million into Germany and now wants other countries to take them?

The water will soon be boiling!

Moderator: Anti-Islamic bigotry is not permitted on the discussion board. This issue is complex and it would be best for you to learn more about it before posting inflammatory comments.

3 ( +5 / -2 )

"Saudi Arabia? Kuwait? Qatar? The United Arab Emirates? Why aren't they pressured to help? Is it because the world only expects good behavior from whites with a European heritage?"

Possibly that and a reluctance to upset them by calling it out. Can't think why....

3 ( +5 / -2 )

Just read Merkel is going to let 300,000 more "migrants" into Germany next year. That'll solve the problem. Germany, you can be like Syria or Iraq or Libya too!

0 ( +4 / -4 )

Saudi Arabia has so far refused to take even a single Muslim "refugee." But it's long been on record as having offered Europe funds to build the new Muslim immigrants 20 brand new mosques inside western Europe in which to worship!

Gee...I wonder what Saudi Arabia really wants? To help people in need, or to encourage the spread of its own home-brew of extreme Islam (Salafism) into and across Europe?

This problem has only just begun, made worse by apologists alleging that any hint of resistance to an unending flow of Muslim migrants into western countries smacks of "racism." They're wrong, and it's only right for each nation-state, not immigrant, to decide for itself whether, and if so how many, and under what conditions migrants should be allowed.

3 ( +5 / -2 )

Spot on crazy joe.

Dunno if we can talk about 'german guilt' jeff. Imo western europe has always felt obligated to help poor countries and Africa in particular. Could be related to post colonialism guilt or also Catholic culture re 'helping your neighbour/ those in need' and even europe's strong socialist heritage. Being overly generous to as many ppl as possible was the beginning of the end am afraid.

I am not against helping others if it remains exceptional but clearly most African governments and ppl have been taking the P. for far too long and there is now a strong culture of entitlement. They know there is a roof, some food and monthly benefits waiting for them on good old europe soil.

What hurts the most is when i hear migrants lament poor benefits 'we only get 300 euro per person/month, thats not enough to buy new clothes' blaming euro governments or even getting angry at them! The nerve!

It's sad to say that but I dream of a europe geographically much further from the African continent. I reckon it would have been benefical on both sides.

2 ( +4 / -2 )

None of the Gulf States are signatories of the 1951 Refugee Convention. The 1951 Refugee Convention defines what a refugee is, what rights refugees have and what the obligations of signatory states to provide assistance are. The United Nations High Commissioner of Refugees was given the responsibility of monitoring compliance and keeping track of what was going on. Most western media outlets rely on data from the UNHCR to get their information about the status of refugees around the world but the UNHCR only monitors state entities that signed the Convention. So in other words they don't include the Gulf States in their computations.

There are far more Syrians living in the Gulf region now than were there before the fighting in Syria began. According to some calculations the Gulf States are sheltering more displaced Syrians as a percentage of their population then Europe is.

2 ( +3 / -1 )

the news blackout thats in effect on all the crime and thuggery committed by migrants is really disturbing. we only get the very tip of the iceberg. no shortage of pics of women and cute child migrants though - hardly representative of the migrant demographic thats innundating europe.

1 ( +5 / -4 )

Everyone seems to be conveniently forgetting Russia. Its their war.

How many refugees have they taken?

2 ( +4 / -2 )

Madverts, are you joking? Its not russias war - they didnt start it or encourage and support the obama/hillary islamic "freedom fighters" battling to topple the secular assad government and replace it with...guess what?

0 ( +5 / -5 )

Go back to the sources. Afghan refuges are from where? Syrian refugees are from where? Somali refuges are from where? Iraq etc. etc. and so forth.

Get these places sorted out - and I dont mean Trumps carpet bombing blather. I mean take away Daeshs reason for being and find Assad a new home. For countries that with economic weaknesses, these need to be strengthened to make the country attractive to its people vice a European nation. For the latter, it might be more expedient to throw dollars, euros and yen at the problem than expend lives to restore order from anarchy. For the former, more troops (not aircraft) would in the short to medium term be required. Once the countries are safe again, Im sure most refugees would even pay to go back to the country of their origin and upbringing.

We can moan all about countries not taking their fair share (what ever that means) but until the source countries are safe and economically sound, we`re "dancing on the head of a pin". So everyone might just as well get on with the job at hand.

2 ( +4 / -2 )

Madverts

Everyone seems to be conveniently forgetting Russia. Its their war. How many refugees have they taken?

First, Russia entered the Syrian war in November 2015. Before that the war had raged for four years, thanks to US-NATO who supplied "moderate terrorists" with weapons, funds and training, and Saudi-Qatar alliance, who supplied the same to ISIS. So it is no more Russia's war then theirs.

Second. Most of the migrants are not Syrians. Due to noisy Western propaganda about Assad, refugees from Syria are "darlings" of the PC Europeans and they are thought to get more preferential treatment. So a lot of migrants claim to be Syrians, even people from countries like Cameroon or Chad. In fact, a lot of genuine refugees are from Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya (hey, guess who destroyed their countries? whose these wars were?)

Third. Russia accepted something about one million, may be more now, refugees from the 2014 US-NATO instigated coup in Ukraine and the civil war, started by the Western-supported Ukrainian neonazi regime.

Now your turn, tell us how many refugees were accepted by US and UK from the countries they destroyed.

-4 ( +2 / -6 )

My question was simple Asakaze.

How many refugees has Russia taken in?

1 ( +3 / -2 )

Madverts, please read carefully my previous post - about one million.

Now answer my simple question about American and British generosity; how many refugees they have taken in?

-2 ( +2 / -4 )

Asakaze, excellent posts.

-1 ( +1 / -2 )

Madverts, please read carefully my previous post - about one million.

Another russian lie

According to the 2015 consensus, Russia has taken 5000 syrian refugees. No more.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Refugees_of_the_Syrian_Civil_War

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Thank you Strangerland. Much appreciated

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

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