STRASBOURG, REUTERS, Feb 7, 2016–  German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande stressed on Sunday the migrant crisis, which brought more than a million people to the European Union last year, needs an EU-level solution.
The two leaders were meeting in Strasbourg on the Franco-German border to discuss the agenda of the next European summit on Feb. 18-19. They had a private meeting before joining EU Parliament Chairman Martin Schulz for dinner.
Separately, the two leaders also expressed a “strong common concern” about the situation in Syria, the French source said.
Russian and Syrian government forces on Saturday intensified an assault on rebel-held areas around the Syrian city of Aleppo that has prompted tens of thousands to flee to the Turkish border to seek refuge.
Merkel, who opened her country’s borders to Syrians fleeing civil war last summer, is under increasing pressure to limit the influx.
The crisis has strained relations between EU member states and tested their commitment to Europe’s open-borders Schengen agreement.