Berlin [Germany], November 15: Germany and Greece are supporting Brussels' efforts to revive the refugee agreement between Turkey and the European Union, Chancellor Scholz said after a meeting with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis in Berlin on Tuesday.
Scholz said the agreement has had "a positive effect and must therefore be brought to life and continued and, of course, further developed." The chancellor is to receive Turkish President RecepTayyip Erdogan in Berlin on Friday.
Scholz said that the talks between Brussels and Ankara on the refugee agreement were being followed closely by Berlin. The chancellor said he recognized that Turkey has taken in a large number of refugees and needs to be supported. But cooperation at the sea and land borders of Greece and Turkey needs to be more effective, he said.
"We are seeking cooperation with Turkey in dealing with the refugee problem," Mitsotakis assured.
In recent months, work has been carried out together with Turkish authorities to limit the number of boats leaving Turkish shores as much as possible, he said. In Greece, the number of irregular migrants has risen again this year. According to the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), around 38,500 migrants had travelled from Turkey to Greece, and thus to the EU, by the beginning of November. This compares to around 18,700 people in the previous year as a whole.
At the height of the refugee crisis in 2016, Turkey reached an agreement with the EU to stop smuggling activities at the Turkish border and take back migrants whose asylum applications were denied in Greece.
In return, Ankara received billions of euros from the EU.
However, Turkey has not taken back any migrants from Greece since 2020 - the reason given at the time was the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic.
Source: Qatar Tribune