Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Wednesday that Turkey would not close its borders with the European Union for migrants until the bloc fulfilled its promises pledged to Ankara
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 11th March, 2020) Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Wednesday that Turkey would not close its borders with the European Union for migrants until the bloc fulfilled its promises pledged to Ankara.
In late February, Turkey announced it would not be able to stem the flow of migrants and refugees following renewed violence in Syria's Idlib province, and therefore would open its borders with the European Union to those wishing to cross. Soon after, Turkey's borders with Greece and Bulgaria were flooded with thousands of migrants.
"At the EU leader's summit on March 26, we will again convey our expectations. Until we get what we were promised, the current situation [with migrants at the borders] will continue," Erdogan said in his address for the Turkish ruling party.
According to the Turkish president, the EU has not fulfilled its obligations under the 2016 migration deal.
"We have fulfilled our obligations, stopped the flow of refugees to Europe. We have found refuge for millions of migrants. But Europe did not keep its word, neither on financial support for refugees nor on the promise to cancel visas [for Turkish citizens]," Erdogan added.
In March 2016, Turkey and the European Union agreed on a deal under which Ankara pledged to take back all undocumented migrants who arrive in EU states through its territory. In exchange, the European Union provides accommodation for Syrian refugees within the European Union on a one-for-one basis, as well as for major concessions on membership and visas.
