MOSCOW (Sputnik) — According to the reply cited by the Bild newspaper, the Turkish authorities will not be able to issue biometric passports to its citizens, a requirement stipulated by Brussels, by that time.
The set of criteria established by the European Commission for abolishing visa requirements for Turkish citizens specifies that only holders of a biometric passport will be allowed to travel to the European Union's borderless Schengen area.
In March, the European Union and Turkey agreed on a deal, under which Ankara pledged to take back all undocumented migrants who arrive in the European Union through its territory, in exchange Syrian refugees accommodated in Turkey on a one-for-one basis. In return, the bloc pledged to accelerate Turkey's EU accession bid and introduce a visa-free regime for its citizens.
