Sorin Grindeanu publicly asked the leader of the far-right party Alternative for Germany (AfD), Alice Weidel, to withdraw her claims that Romanian immigrants are “robbing” the German social protection system and to apologize to the Romanian community. In a message published on Wednesday on the X platform, Grindeanu condemned the generalizations made based on nationality criteria and recalled the contribution of over 500,000 Romanians who work legally in Germany.
“To collectively blame people based on their origin goes against EU values”
“Ms. Alice Weidel, I publicly ask you to retract your statement that “immigrants from Romania are robbing” Germany’s social protection system and to apologize to the Romanian community in Germany,” wrote Sorin Grindeanu, on Wednesday, on the X platform.
He cited the number of Romanians who work legally in Germany and contribute to the social insurance system, as well as the presence of Romanian doctors in the German health system.
“More than 500,000 Romanians work legally in Germany and contribute to the social insurance system, just like any German citizen. They represent three out of four Romanians of working age, a proportion as high as in the case of Germans. More than 4,000 of them are doctors who devotedly care for German patients,” Grindeanu said.
In his message, Grindeanu criticized the generalizations made based on criteria of origin and referred to European values and the history of the Second World War.
“To collectively blame people on the basis of their origin goes against the values on which the European Union was built. I had hoped that such a mentality had remained buried under the ruins of the Second World War. You are bringing it back to life.”
He also mentioned the role of the European Union in the development of Germany, referring to the legacy of former German Chancellor Konrad Adenauer.
“The European Union allowed Germany to become an equal partner again and opened up access to the single market. This is Adenauer’s legacy. Cherish it, don’t undermine it with xenophobia.”
“Romanians deserve the same respect that Germans enjoy throughout Europe”
Grindeanu emphasized that Romanians must benefit from the same respect as German citizens in other European states.
“Romanians deserve the same respect that Germans enjoy throughout Europe. Unlike you, I will defend the rights of Germans who work or travel in the European Union, just as I defend the rights of my Romanian compatriots today.”
“Germans who work day by day alongside Romanians know that your message does not represent them!” concluded Sorin Grindeanu.
The controversy broke out after the broadcast of an investigation by the German regional public television MDR, which presents, among other things, the situation in Magdeburg, the capital of the state of Saxony-Anhalt, where social expenses for Romanian citizens have increased more than 20 times, reaching three million euros annually.
Starting from this investigation, Alice Weidel, the AfD leader, accused Romanian immigrants of “robbing the German social system”.
In an intervention at Digi24, Tudor-Dan Ancuța, a parliamentary adviser in the German Bundestag, explained that the AfD leader’s statements are part of a political strategy by which the group tries to attract electoral support using speeches directed against various immigrant communities.
