In dealing with Europe's migrant crisis, Germany sets an example

THE so-called "migrant crisis" facing western Europe has laid bare the duplicity of its dealings with the Middle East. From the Sykes-Picot borders of the Mideast world drawn up after World War I to more recent interventions in Iraq, Libya and Syria, Europe's leading powers - Britain and France in particular - bear some responsibility for the situation. Yes, the United States, Russia and others should also share the blame but this does not dilute western European culpability.

The International Organization for Migration estimates that so far this year, 350,000 people have arrived in Greece, Italy and other southern European countries hoping to get asylum. There were only 280,000 arrivals for the whole of 2014. Yet, as the European Union's (EU) own figures show, there are just 1.5 million recognised refugees currently living in the 28 member states of the EU (plus Norway and Switzerland) which has a combined population of over 500 million. This compares to a global figure of some 16 million displaced persons seeking refuge.

Indeed, since the outbreak of the civil war in Syria, Turkey has opened its borders to 1.7 million fleeing people. Jordan has taken in some 680,000 refugees. And tiny Lebanon, with a population of less than five million, hosts 1.5 million who have sought safety from the various regional conflicts. Only Turkey among them is a signatory to the 1951 Convention on Refugees. Against this backdrop, it is reprehensible that the wealthy western Europeans should be in a panic over the relatively small numbers arriving on their southern periphery. After all, these EU members proudly proclaim the right to asylum as a fundamental article of faith.