EU-Turkey deal: crack down on free media does not bring visa liberalisation closer - Main contents

During today's plenary debate on the implementation of the EU-Turkey agreement, the ALDE group vice-president Sophie in 't Veld has highlighted several legal concerns that the deal raises. Visa liberalisation for Turkey will not be considered until the 72 requirements listed in the roadmap are fully met, the ALDE Group says.

Sophie in 't Veld, first vice-president of the ALDE Group, said: "The EU-Turkey deal is not  an agreement, it a decision made by EU Member States, loosely agreeing all sorts of things which bypass all normal democratic procedures, flouting international law".

"The UN has repeatedly expressed its doubts about the conformity of this arrangement with international law and human rights obligations, even in this chamber, not long ago".

"Liberals and Democrats are all in favour of finding pragmatic solutions, but we do need solutions that are legally watertight. The "country arrest" imposed on Ebru Umar, an EU citizen and Dutch-Turkish journalist, does little to convince Parliament that is should endorse visa liberalisation.

"We hear recurring reports from human rights organisations about refugees being returned from Greece to Turkey, without being able to apply for asylum. We also get reports on the disgraceful conditions in Greek detention centres. Does  the European Commission go and see for itself if the reports are accurate? And what does the Commission do about it?"

"This so-called agreement is extremely fragile, both legally and in practice. We outsource our problems, hope Turkey and other countries will keep refugees away from our doorstep. Europe is divided, paralysed and weak; Erdogan knows this. The only answer to this is European unity".

"It must be the highest priority of the Dutch Presidency to put a complete package on the table, including a border and coast guard, legal migration routes into the EU labour market and new "Dublin" distribution rules. Surely, if we can find an agreement with the Erdogan government, we can find an agreement within the EU."

Photo credit: Cliff