EU Parliament Must Not Give Any Concessions to Turkey on Visa-Free Regime

Turkey should not be granted any concessions on the issue of the visa-free regime with the European Union prior to meeting all of the bloc’s requirements, and the European Parliament’s approval is paramount, Kostas Chrysogonos, a Greek member of the European Parliament, told Sputnik on Wednesday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — On Monday, European parliamentarians from the Civil Liberties Committee said in a statement that a visa-free regime should not be granted to Turkey before all of the EU benchmarks concerning human rights and other issues have been met. The statement follows a European Commission proposal to lift the visa requirements based on the understanding that Ankara would fulfill the remaining commitments later.

"Obviously we cannot and must not make any discounts or concessions to Turkey in this matter. All the criteria must be met, otherwise no visa-free regime should be granted to Turkey," Chrysogonos, a member of both the Committee on Legal Affairs and the Delegation to the EU-Turkey Joint Parliamentary Committee, said.

Some parliamentarians have criticized the EU leadership for leaving the European Parliament outside the talks with Ankara on a visa-waiver program.

"The EU leaders faced a critical situation when they were negotiating with Turkey three months ago and they had to act speedily. However, the European Parliament must give its approval before any changes in the existing visa-regime take place," Chrysogonos said.

An EU decision on the matter is expected in June. Most of the 72 requirements have already been fulfilled by Ankara, although five problematic criteria remain, including the revision of Turkey’s national anti-terrorism laws that affect freedom of the press.

On Tuesday, Ankara and Brussels postponed a high-level meeting scheduled for May 13 to discuss the issue of visa liberalization for Turkish citizens visiting the Schengen area.

In mid-March, the European Union and Ankara agreed on a deal under which Turkey pledged to take back all undocumented migrants who arrive in the European Union through its territory in exchange for legal Syrian refugees currently residing in Turkey, on a one-for-one basis. In return, the 28-member bloc pledged to accelerate the Turkish EU accession bid and introduce a visa-free regime between Turkey and the Schengen area.