Turkey's Erdogan threatens EU with new migrant influx
SOURCE
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan threatened Friday to walk away from a deal that has substantially reduced the flow of migrants to the European Union and also effectively end Ankara's membership bid by bringing back capital punishment.
Erdogan's
warning he could open Turkey's borders to illegal migrants bound for
Europe prompted an immediate objection from Germany that such "threats"
were unhelpful.
Greece,
which would face a heightened influx of migrants if Turkey made good
its threat, also expressed "concern" at what it said would be "an act of
aggression."
The
Turkish leader's comments came a day after the European Parliament
angered Ankara by backing a freeze of its EU accession talks, already
hit by alarm over its crackdown in the wake of a failed coup in July.
"Listen
to me. If you go any further, then the frontiers will be opened, bear
that in mind," Erdogan told the EU during a speech in Istanbul.
At a later meeting, Erdogan reaffirmed he would sign a law bringing back the death penalty if it is approved by parliament.
"If
the people say 'we want the death penalty'... and this goes to
parliament and parliament passes it and it comes to me, I declare I will
approve this," he added.
EU
officials have repeatedly made clear that bringing back the death
penalty would instantly end Turkey's bid for membership as abolishing
capital punishment is a key precondition.
- 'Promises unfulfilled' -
On
March 18, Ankara and Brussels forged a deal for Turkey to halt the flow
of migrants to Europe -- an accord that has largely been successful in
reducing numbers crossing the Aegean Sea between Turkey and Greece.
According
to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), just over
171,000 have crossed to Greece so far this year, much lower than the
comparable figure for 2015 of almost 740,000.
Hundreds
of migrants drowned while trying to cross the Aegean in 2015 on
unseaworthy boats, including three-year-old Syrian Aylan Kurdi. The
images of his lifeless body washed up on a Turkish beach spurred the
international community into action.
Turkey
agreed to step up maritime and land border controls in exchange for
incentives on its long-stalled membership bid, including visa-free
travel for its citizens and an acceleration of the accession talks.
However
with an October target passing, no apparent progress on the visa issue
and the accession talks stalled, Ankara has accused Brussels of failing
to keep its side of the bargain.
In
response to Erdogan's remarks, German Chancellor Angela Merkel's
spokeswoman Ulrike Demmer said the deal was in the interest "of all
parties" and that "threats on either side are not helpful".
Greece's
Deputy Defence Minister Dimitris Vitsas said that "using refugees and
migrants to achieve other objectives (than those related to managing the
influx) is an act of aggression".
EU
Commission spokesman Margaritis Schinas said it would not get involved
in "statements about hypothetical scenarios" and was still committed to
implementing the agreement.
Erdogan
has also accused Brussels of failing to fulfil a promise to deliver
some six billion euros ($6.3 billion) in aid for refugees.
The EU says the money is to be transferred gradually for individual projects and not in a single payment.
Erdogan
said while Turkey itself was looking after three million refugees --
including 2.7 million Syrians who escaped the civil war but also Iraqis
-- "you (the EU) did not fulfil your promises".
- 'Not a reality' -
The
European Parliament vote to freeze the accession talks reflected
spiralling tensions with Ankara after Brussels repeatedly expressed
alarm over the magnitude of Turkey's crackdown after the coup attempts
as well as the threats to bring back capital punishment.
The
parliamentary vote is non-binding and earlier this month, all EU
foreign ministers -- with the exception of Austria -- said they favoured
continuing the accession talks.
But
analysts say the entire membership process is in deep trouble, with
little hope of progress and several risk factors that could lead to its
collapse.
"Realistically,
moving forward is also nearly impossible... Both Brussels and Ankara
remain stuck and are playing for time," Asli Aydintasbas of the European
Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR) said in a research paper.
She
suggested an alternative form of engagement between Turkey and the EU,
other than full membership, could be agreed to save face and move
forward.
Austria's
Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz, a hardliner on Turkey, said Europe
should strengthen its own borders after Erdogan's comments and "must not
give into blackmail".