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Turkey's EU bid must not interfere with migration agreement: EP

Xinhua, April 15, 2016 Adjust font size:

The European Parliament (EP) on Thursday said negotiations on Turkey's EU bid should not interfere with the migration agreement reached between the European authorities and their Turkish counterparts.

"EU-Turkey cooperation on migration should not be linked to the calendar, content and conditionality of the negotiation process" of the adhesion of Turkey to the EU, the EP said.

"Outsourcing the refugee crisis to Turkey is not a credible long-term solution to the problem," stated the text from Members of European Parliament (MEPs), who on Wednesday debated the agreement reached on March 18 between European leaders and Ankara.

"Only a political solution to the Syrian crisis can provide a lasting response to this humanitarian crisis," added the MEPs.

In a resolution, the EP demands that the shared EU-Turkey action plan on refugees and the management of migration be immediately put into action, but only as "part of a comprehensive cooperation agenda based on shared responsibility, mutual commitments and delivery."

Despite the resolution adopted Thursday with 375 votes in favor, 133 against and 87 abstentions, the part of the agreement providing for the acceleration of adhesion negotiations for Turkey and the liberalization of visas for Turkish citizens who wish to enter the EU continues to provoke stark divisions.

Numerous parliamentarians haven't hesitated to denounce the "fool's bargain" imposed by Ankara and to which Brussels has promised 3 billion euros (3.38 billion U.S. dollars) on top of its original allocation of the same amount.

In its resolution, the EP recalled Turkey currently hosts the largest population of refugees in the world and notes that the country remains a "key strategic partner for the EU." Endit