BERLIN
German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Monday there was no place in Germany for agitation and defamation against immigrants.
Merkel made the remarks in response to a question about demonstrations against immigrants by the Dresden-based right wing group, Patriotic Europeans Against the Islamisation of the West or the Pegida.
Addressing a joint press conference with her Bulgarian counterpart Boyko Borisov following talks in Berlin, she said: "There is no place for agitation and defamation against immigrants who came to us from the other lands."
The Pegida is known for its anti-Muslim and anti-refugee stance, and has organized several protests in Germany's eastern city of Dresden.
She called on the public to be careful in their association with right wing groups like Pegida.
Last week, German government deputy spokeswoman Christiane Wirtz said the government was determined to take a stand against every type of misanthropy.
"In the name of chancellor's German government, I would like to clearly say that there is no place in Germany for the agitation against believers from different religions," Wirtz said.
- South Stream contract
The two prime ministers also spoke about Russia's cancellation of the South Stream natural gas pipeline project.
"I think that the situation should be debated with Russia within the ambit of justice and international law," Merkel said.
"I would like to point out there was a legal status about the South Stream agreement which was penned by different countries within the legal scope," she said.
Bulgarian Prime Minister agreed with Merkel.
"Bulgarian and Russian governments should continue their contacts and joint activities on the project within the legal scope, otherwise the contract is annulled," Borisov said.
Early December, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced plans for a new pipeline project to pass through Turkey's northwestern Thrace region and a natural gas hub on the Turkish-Greek border to replace the South Stream natural gas pipeline, which was initially planned to pass through Bulgaria to Europe.
www.aa.com.tr/en
