It’s good those borders are closed and that the waving through of migrants has stopped in the Western Balkans.
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Meanwhile, Luxembourg Prime Minister Xavier Bettel said on March 17 that he had received some guarantees concerning the legality of a potential EU-Turkey migration deal, but was still not convinced.
The migrant crisis has left Europe increasingly divided, with fears that its Schengen passport-free zone could collapse as states reintroduce border controls and concerns over the rise of populist parties on anti-immigration sentiment.
“We have submitted a clear and humanitarian offer to Europe [over the refugee deal], but Turkey will not be a transit country for human trafficking or a depot of refugees”, Davutoglu said. Austria, France and Germany are opposed to Turkey joining the EU.
It is said a new, upgraded agreement between the European Union and Turkey could be expected to tackle the refugee crisis. “So it is crucial that we come to a deal now and tomorrow”, Rutte added. But many have said that Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu drives a very hard bargain.
Refugee Council chief executive Maurice Wren said: “The EU’s plan to outsource its responsibility for protecting refugees to Turkey is immoral, unworkable and probably illegal. I refuse to accept negotiations that sometimes resemble a form of blackmail”.
Amnesty International is calling on the European Union not to strike a deal with Ankara which could halt the flow of migrants.
Turkey’s prime minister, Ahmet Davutoglu, is scheduled to join the meeting Friday to try to nail down a deal.
The 28 states spent the day haggling over the proposal, under which Turkey would take all migrants from Greece, helping curb an unprecedented influx of 1.2 million people from Syria and elsewhere since 2015. Ankara stands to gain 6 billion euros (£4.7bn) in aid as well as visa-free travel for its nationals.
But Cyprus, along with other European countries, takes issue with certain parts of the agreement. Turkey invaded Cyprus in 1974, and the island is still partitioned.
Hollywood star and UNHCR goodwill ambassdor Angelina Jolie on Thursday visited the island of Lesbos, the principal port of entry for migrants to Europe. “Only if this is possible, can we move forward here”.
Daniele Lamarque, a member of the EU Court of Auditors, presented the report Thursday on EU-funded projects approved for Algeria, Georgia, Moldova, Morocco and Ukraine in 2007-13.
“The total amount of expenditure charged to the European Union budget could not be established in the course of the audit”, the watchdog said. This has to happen before the agreement with Turkey for the return of anyone arriving on the islands can begin.
European Parliament President Martin Schulz said Thursday that the EU would reach an agreement with Turkey.
Costas Kantouris in Idomeni, Greece contributed. Even European Council President Donald Tusk – who hosts the summit – admitted gloomily “the catalogue of issues to be resolved is long”.
The Belgian leader added that the 28-member bloc planned to notify Turkey of the need to respect press freedom and human rights. Most of the participating countries have resettled Syrians staying in Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey.
The summit is due open in Brussels at 1500 GMT.
Since the first days of the Syrian conflict, more than one million refugees have arrived in Europe.
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The EU, however, feels it has no better option.
