German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble attended the conference”The Future of Europe. What Lies Ahead” in Paris. He pointed to German’s willingness to take on a large number of refugees while speaking to students at Sciences Po University, during a visit on the sidelines of the Eurogroup conference.

During the meeting, a heated discussion took place during the debate on Greece and the refugee crisis. A student asked, “What do you have to say about the suicides in Greece that have escalated since austerity was imposed on the country?” The question was greeted by cheers and applause.

Schaeuble responded by telling the student that “you need to understand that there was no rhetoric of punishment adopted. The game is not played in this way, not by blaming each other.” He told French students that the problems with Greece existed prior to the crisis.

He pointed out that the EU works according to rules. “Neither I nor the chancellor Angela Merkel have ever blamed Greece.”