EU wants Turkey and Libya to help fight illegal immigration

ekathimerini.com | EU wants Turkey and Libya to help fight illegal immigration

STOCKHOLM (AFP) – The European Union will soon undertake tricky political talks with Turkey and Libya as they look for their help in cracking down on people-smuggling rings to stem the flow of illegal immigrants into Europe.

But some of the demands Ankara and Tripoli are making in exchange for their help could prove complicated.

EU Justice Commissioner Jacques Barrot, in Stockholm for a meeting of European Union justice and home affairs ministers on Thursday and yesterday, told reporters he was preparing visits to the two countries.

“I plan to travel to Libya after the summer break and to Turkey in September or October,” Barrot said, adding that he expected “an official invitation” from Turkey’s interior minister soon. The fight against illegal immigration “can only be fought by resolving two issues: ties with Turkey and Libya,” French Immigration Minister Eric Besson told AFP.

“When it comes to Turkey, their willingness to cooperate with the EU needs to be tested,” he added. “The first comments by Turkey’s interior minister have been encouraging. But now we have to see the concrete details.”

The 27-member bloc wants Turkey and Libya to crack down on the organized people-smuggling rings and to agree to take back the illegal immigrants who departed from their coasts, Barrot said.

Barrot is determined to curb the influx of illegal immigrants, which threatens to destabilize some countries in Europe – such as Greece – and hampers EU efforts to handle legitimate asylum requests.

“If we don’t link migration to development and diplomacy we won’t succeed,” he warned.

Yet a number of obstacles remain before Turkey agrees to cooperate with the EU.

“Turkey is ready to sign readmission agreements” to take back immigrants who left from its territory,” Barrot said.

“But it says it is merely a transit country and wants similar agreements signed with Pakistan and Afghanistan” to enable Ankara to send back the immigrants who came from those countries, he added.