The Ankara-Berlin pact: how to stop the migration crisis?

On 7 March 2016 in Brussels, a European Council meeting was held with the participation of the Prime Minister of Turkey Ahmet Davutoğlu, to find a joint solution to the migration crisis and speed up the process of Turkey’s accession to the EU. This was a further element of the intensive dialogue initiated at the summit held on 29 November 2015. The statement significantly expanded the previous arrangements for Turkey’s containment on its territory of the influx of migrants to Europe, and its proposals included the introduction of a new mechanism for returning illegal migrants leaving Turkey and transferring Syrian migrants from Turkey to the EU. In return, Turkey has been offered the prospect of a significant acceleration of the accession negotiations and the visa liberalisation process (visas may be abolished as early as the end of June 2016), as well as financial assistance. The decisive influence on the form of the statement came from talks between the German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Prime Minister Davutoğlu. The agreement gave Merkel a temporary boost in the run-up to regional elections in Germany, and also represented a short-term success for Turkey. However, this document was merely a blueprint for further action, and was to be the subject of the next EU summit on 17 March 2016. It remained an open question as to whether its postulates would be confirmed and the cooperation plan implemented. This had enormous importance for the further development of the migration crisis, Merkel’s position in Germany, and strategic relations between the EU and Turkey.

• Primary Source

ESO: Background information: International Summit: Meeting of the EU heads of state or government with Turkey, Brussels, 7 March 2016 http://www.europeansources.info/record/international-summit-meeting-of-the-eu-heads-of-state-or-government-with-turkey-brussels-7-march-2016/

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