Turkey hopes to reach an agreement with the European Union to resolve the immigration crisis by March 26th, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoλουlu said a day after a tense Brussels summit.
“If we manage to reach an agreement by March 26, then it will be on the table during the European leaders' summit, which will be held on the same day,” Mevlüt Çavuşoλουlu said in an interview with Anadolu Agency.
The Turkish Foreign Minister referred to the European summit scheduled for March 26th.
Mevlüt Çavuşoλουlu said that the agreement between the European Union and Turkey needs to be updated, taking into account the developments in Syria, and that Ankara is ready to work constructively on the issue.
Mevlüt Çavuşoλουlu said that the relaxation of the visa regime for the European Union and the updating of the customs union with the EU should also be implemented, helping to resolve the immigration issue.
His remarks follow a meeting in Brussels yesterday between Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Charles Michel.
During yesterday's talks, the European Union and Ankara decided to continue negotiations on the immigration issue. In this context, Mevlüt Çavuşoλουlu stated that he will meet with the head of European diplomacy Josep Borel.
At the Brussels meeting, the European Union called on Turkey to “abide by the commitments” stemming from the EU-Turkey March 2016 agreement, which stipulates that migrants remain in Turkey in exchange for European financial assistance.
Ankara accuses the EU of failing to deliver on its promises, especially in terms of funding.
The Turkish Foreign Minister also said that the 2016 agreement should be reconsidered in the light of the latest developments in Syria, mainly in the province of Idlib, where about one million Syrians displaced due to the war are crowded at the Turkish border.
Tayyip Erdogan systematically calls on European countries to financially support his plan to build houses in Idlib for the settlement of Syrian refugees, preventing a new wave of refugees from entering Turkish territory.
“We are ready to work in a constructive way, but if we have to draw up a roadmap, we expect the European Union to be honest,” Tsavousoglu said.
