A German rescuer volunteer escorts with his vessel a dinghy with refugees and migrants as they arrive from the Turkish coast to the northeastern Greek island of Lesbos. File picture.

Germany expects to strike a deal in March to get Ireland other European Unions nations to accept a share of the growing flow of migrants from the Middle East, the head of the country's biggest employers group said in Dublin.

Having used up political capital in the wake of the financial crisis Germany may have to make concessions, potentially including a debt deal for Greece, in order to secure a deal, he said.

With her CDU party facing three key state elections over the next month German Chancellor Angela Merkel is under intense pressure to secure agreement at a European leaders summit on March 10 that would see the other 27 EU states each take a share of any further arrivals, with quotas based on population or wealth, Dr Markus Kerber, CEO of the Federation of German Industries (BDI), told a meeting of Irish business leaders in Dublin hosted by Ibec.

With 1.1 million people arriving into the country last year the migration crisis is now Germany's biggest political issue.

Growing disquiet at home over the impact of the refugee crisis is eroding political support for Mrs Merkel's CDU party.

To shore up support Mrs Merkel needs a deal to share migrants across the EU, agreement with Turkey to stem the flow of people from there into Greece, and victory in at two out of three crunch state elections, Dr Kerber said.

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