Refugees Bargain : Merkel says not concerned over EU-Turkey refugee deal

German Chancellor Angela Merkel Wednesday dismissed concerns over the EU-Turkey refugee agreement, adding that Ankara might need more time to fulfill criteria for visa liberalization as part of the deal.

Addressing a press conference after her cabinet meeting on Wednesday, Merkel renewed Germany’s commitment to the deal, and said the EU Commission and Turkish officials will hold talks to discuss differences on benchmarks for visa liberalization.

“I am not worried, rather we might need some more time to address some of the questions,” she said.

“But in any case, in principle we stand behind our agreement,” she added.

Her remarks came a day after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan sharply criticized the EU for demanding change in Turkey’s anti-terror legislation in exchange for visa liberalization and warned about the future of EU-Turkey cooperation in addressing the refugee crisis...
 [aa.com.tr]
25/5/16
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