Q&A: Turkey-EU migrant deal stuck in the doldrums
Refugees in Ankara, Turkey - Photo © The European Union
(BRUSSELS) - A deal last November between Turkey and the EU to curb the huge flow of refugees and migrants raised high hopes of a resolution to the crisis, but it has proved slow to bear fruit with Brussels accusing Ankara of failing to tackle people smugglers.
Hopes rose again Friday after German Chancellor Angela Merkel said she had obtained a pledge from Turkey to "do everything" to cut the arrivals.
- What did Turkey promise? -
Under the deal sealed last November after tough negotiations, Turkey pledged to break the migrant flow through its territory to Greece, the route that most refugees and migrants take to Europe.
Out of the more than one million migrants who entered the European Union in 2015 by sea, more than three-quarters crossed the Aegean from the Turkish coast.
The Turks pledged to tighten their borders, notably by promising to fight smuggling networks who operate on their territory.
Turkey also pledged to accept more "readmissions" of migrants who could not claim refugee status and who entered Europe illegally through Turkish territory.
The plan also calls for Ankara to improve social and economic conditions for Syrians, for example by letting refugees work.
- What did Brussels promise? -
The Europeans promised to provide Turkey with three billion euros ($3.26 billion) of aid, mainly for projects to improve the daily lives of Syrian refugees in Turkey.
Brussels also agreed to reinvigorate Turkey's drive for membership of the 28-nation bloc with the opening of a new file on economic and monetary policy.
The EU also promised to accelerate negotiations to eventually scrap short-stay visas for Turkish citizens entering the Schengen zone, with Germany and Turkey saying Friday they wanted that to happen by October.
- Is the EU satisfied so far? -
Not really. In November, between 5,000 and 6,000 migrants landed daily on the Greek coast from Turkey. The arrival numbers, which European officials say are the litmus test for their cooperation with Turkey, has fallen to around 2,000 and 3,000 who arrived daily in the last few weeks.
But European Commission Vice President Frans Timmermans said during a visit to Ankara this week that the migrant flow remained "far too high." EU officials said this was all the more the case as plunging temperatures and wintry weather discouraged people from travelling.
The Europeans accuse Turkey of failing to do much to stop the smugglers. The Greek government accused the Turks of aiding and abetting the smugglers.
Moreover, European countries want Turkey to readmit failed asylum seekers.
- What does Turkey say? -
Turkey reproaches the Europeans for overlooking the fact it has already welcomed 2.5 million refugees, and that it has had to deal with the situation for a long time. Ankara insists it has made significant efforts to meet its commitments.
The Turks have just agreed to grant work permits in some sectors for Syrians in order to improve their daily life.
They have also imposed restrictions for issuing visas for Syrians entering their country by air or sea, a measure likely to limit some of the flow.
Ankara does not like Europe's determination to impose checks on the promised financial aid. For its part, Brussels has still not found a way to finance the aid, particularly on the share that each member state should pay.
The Turks also want the European countries to agree to resettle Syrian and other refugees from Turkish territory to European member states.
However, few European countries are prepared to accept them for now, while the EU is struggling already to relocate an agreed 160,000 people from Greece and Italy to other member states.