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In her speech in the German Parliament this morning, Chancellor Angela Merkel referred, among other things, to the issue of EU-Turkey relations that will be debated on the first day of tomorrow’s Summit in Brussels. The EU’s relations with Turkey are “complex”, he said. “On the one hand, the complaints about human rights, on the other hand, the tension in the eastern Mediterranean between Greece and Turkey, between Cyprus and Turkey – serious tension.” She added: “We cannot imagine how small the distance is in some cases between a military conflict and a peaceful settlement.”
At the same time, the chancellor made clear that Turkey is a NATO partner and is doing a “wonderful and remarkable” job of hosting four million refugees. “We need to analyze very carefully how to reduce tensions, how to strengthen cooperation on refugees and on the humane treatment of refugees.” Summing up, in a way, Germany’s position at tomorrow’s Summit, he said that we should “redefine our relationship with Turkey every time, but also insist on cooperating with it on important issues.”
Refugee agreement request
Following her speech, Merkel referred to recent events in the Moria refugee camp. Criticizing Greece, she noted that “in recent days we have seen horrible images about the treatment of refugees. “And not from Turkey, I would like to emphasize, but from Lesbos, from an EU member state.” It is important, she stressed, that a pilot refugee camp be established on Lesbos, which will be largely managed by the EU. While supporting the need for an immediate German response to provide humanitarian aid to Lesbos, of the problem.
In this context, the Chancellor referred to the European asylum policy. In his view, refugees will occupy Europe for decades, hence the need for a single European asylum and immigration policy. Ms Merkel thanked the Commission for its proposal last week. As she stressed, “the question of how to implement it is a fundamental pillar for the cohesion of Europe”. If a common refugee base is not found, this will affect the EU’s ability to act.
