2015 mülteci krizinin siyasi atmosfere etkisi- Avrupa Birliği ve göç konularının siyasi partiler ve kamu düzeyi analizi: Almanya örneği

Over the last few years, the European Union has been experiencing a period of never-ending crises. The responses given by the EU and member states to these crises have shaped the EU and the political atmosphere in the member states. Analyzing the effects of crises on the EU and its member states is critical in understanding the changing dynamics of the European integration. Since 2015, the Refugee Crisis has dramatically affected and transformed European politics. Far-right political parties have grown more outspoken in shaping the political atmosphere as a response to the Refugee Crisis. The case of Germany shows that the Refugee Crisis has impacted the political atmosphere all over Europe, with increasing anti-immigration and anti-EU discourses in its aftermath. Furthermore, the competition among political parties has changed its shape and intensity, and far-right groups such as the Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) in Germany, which has begun to gain political influence, have been regarded as influential in shaping immigration and EU policies. Such parties have instrumentalized the Refugee Crisis as a political opportunity to move towards mainstream constituents and enlarge their sphere of influence in domestic politics. Additionally, the rise of these parties has also limited the movements of mainstream parties and, therefore, played a crucial role in the emergence of more Eurosceptic and anti-immigration policies. In this regard, this dissertation aims to contribute to the literature on European integration by addressing the effects of the Refugee Crisis on the political atmosphere in Germany with the assumptions of the post-functionalist theory.