The President of the European Council, Charles Michel, urged Turkey on Tuesday 6 April to take the hand extended by the European Union to improve their bilateral relationship.
“We are reaching out with a progressive agenda. It is up to Turkey to seize the opportunity in a solid and sustainable way”, stressed Mr Michel after a meeting in Ankara with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. “In recent months we have seen a calming down (in the eastern Mediterranean), this is a positive development, which must be sustained and improved”, he added.
“We want to move towards a much better relationship in the future. But we are only at the beginning of this journey. And the coming weeks and months will show how far we can go on this path together”, added Mrs von der Leyen.
As of press time, Mr Erdoğan had not issued a statement about the meeting.
At the meeting, which Mrs von der Leyen described as “interesting”, EU representatives explained to Mr Erdoğan the EU’s proposal: “a progressive, proportionate and reversible agenda” which could be implemented with regard to Turkey and which would continue the cooling down.
To the media, the Presidents of the European Council and the Commission recalled the EU’s proposals as agreed at the EU leaders’ video conference on 25 March (see EUROPE 12686/3).
Thus, the EU, Turkey’s largest trading partner, is ready to strengthen its economic cooperation through the customs union. “This customs union is a unique framework that we have with no other country. That is why we are also looking for innovative ways not only to modernise the customs union, but also to stimulate public and private cooperation, with a focus on the green and digital transitions”, explained Mrs von der Leyen.
The EU and Turkey could also resume their high-level dialogues in many areas, with Mrs von der Leyen focusing on climate change and health.
In addition, while in Ankara, the President of the European Commission and the President of the European Council reaffirmed their willingness to renew the EU’s financial support for the four million refugees, many of them Syrians, in Turkey. The EU-Turkey agreement of March 2016 “remains valid and has brought positive results”, the President commented, adding that the EU expects Turkey to respect its commitments under this agreement: to prevent irregular departures of migrants to Greece and the EU, but also “to restart return operations” of these same migrants from Greece.
Resuming these operations would be a major sign of “goodwill” to the EU, which in return would continue to support refugees in Turkey financially, Mrs von der Leyen added.
The President was also due to travel to Jordan after her visit to Ankara to discuss the refugee situation in the country.
The two leaders stressed on Tuesday the EU’s willingness to “explore new ways to develop people-to-people contacts and mobility” between the two blocs, with the Commission President citing the positive experience of the Erasmus and Horizon Europe programmes.
But while the EU is considering a rapprochement with Turkey, not everything is going well in the country. The Presidents of the Commission and the European Council reiterated their concerns about the deteriorating human rights situation and the Rule of law.
“Human rights are non-negotiable. They are a top priority, without a doubt. We have been very clear on this point”, warned Mrs von der Leyen, without specifying whether they were a sine qua non for progress on the positive agenda. The Commission President particularly insisted on Turkey’s withdrawal from the Istanbul Convention. “These issues remain an essential part of our relationship”, Mr Michel added.
Earlier in the day, the President of the European Council met with representatives of various international organisations (UNHCR, IOM, UN Women, UNICEF & UNDP). According to a European source, they discussed the situation of women after Turkey’s withdrawal from the Istanbul Convention, the situation of refugees, and the situation on the country’s southeastern borders and in the Turkish-controlled areas of northern Syria. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant and Solenn Paulic)