EU unwilling to take in Syria refugees but will help Turkey

(LUXEMBOURG) - The European Union said Monday it would continue assisting Turkey in coping with an influx of more than 100,000 refugees from Syria but made no offer to take them in.

"Clearly we need to concentrate on the shelter of refugees there," German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle said during talks among the EU's 27 foreign ministers in Luxembourg.

"These refugees don't want to leave their country for ever, they have family, they have personal ties with the country, they want to return to their country as quickly as possible," he said.

Luxembourg counterpart Jean Asselborn agreed. "We can't take planes and transport these people to Europe and say the problem is settled," he said.

The ministers were responding to a call by Turkey's European Union Affairs Minister Egemen Bagis for Europe to do more to help Ankara tackle the influx.

"Europe should start thinking about the people who have fled Syria into Turkey," Bagis said in an interview with German daily Die Welt.

"Europe has to help people who need a safe haven. It's time for Europe to finally help out," he added.

EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said Brussels had been helping Turkey "for some time" and would continue.

Turkey's problem was that it needed time to prepare facilities, she noted.

"For them the big issue is making sure they can provide the services they want to provide. We're offering help and support to them and to all the neighbours in the region."

The United Nations estimates that more than 2.5 million people have been affected by the fighting. There are more than 348,000 Syrian refugees registered in neighbouring countries, but many more are unregistered.