Transatlantic TakeBERLIN—The influx of refugees into Germany is forcing its leaders to throw aside some of their long-held convictions and face reality. They are making nice with authoritarian Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to get him to accept more refugees. They are talking to Russian President Vladimir Putin so that he does not further fuel the crisis. They are even negotiating with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to stem the flood.
The refugee influx is now driving German politics, and not the other way around. Chancellor Angela Merkel and Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier are in mitigation mode. Merkel has to quell furor …read more