Monday, March 7, 2016

EU -Turkey Migrant Talks End With Turkey Making Additional Demands



New York Times: Plan to Slow Flow of Refugees to Europe Stalls After Turkey Makes Demands

BRUSSELS — Turkey surprised European Union leaders on Monday by hitting them with a steep new set of demands as preconditions to help stem the flow of refugees from Syria and Iraq and other migrants seeking to enter Europe.

The demands at the start of an emergency summit in Brussels included billions in more money, easier access to visas for Turks to go to Europe, and the dramatic acceleration of talks on Turkey’s membership in the bloc, a discussion that has languished for years.

The toughening of the Turkish position came just days after the government seized Zaman, the country’s largest newspaper, as part of a media crackdown, and underscored Ankara’s seeming attempt to use the migration crisis to its advantage.

Read more ....

WNU Editor: I call this a Turkish shakedown .... and I am willing to bet that not one penny that Turkey is demanding will end up in the hands of the refugees who need it, nor will the flow of migrants stop. This demand will also cause problems and be open to abuse .... Turkey requests visa-free travel in EU by end of June (AA). Bottom line .... Turkey is not an ally to the West, and  EU leaders are still in denial of that very simple fact.

More News On Today's EU - Turkey Talks On The Migrant Crisis

Turkey demands more money to help EU tackle migrant crisis -- AP
Turkey raises stakes with EU on curbing migrant wave -- Reuters
Turkey ramps up demands to help EU on migrant crisis -- AFP
Migrant crisis: EU and Turkey hold 'difficult' summit -- BBC
Turkey Asks EU for Additional $3B to Help Stem Migrant Flow -- VOA
EU needs more time to agree Turkey migration plan: EU official -- Reuters

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