Macron : Europe Must Not Yield to Turkey's Pressure !

*Strasbourg/CoE/Angelo Marcopolo/- "Above all, We (EU) Must Not Yield to Turkey's Pressure ! That's Clear for me", stressed French President Emmanuel Macron, speaking at CoE's Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) in Strasbourg, concerning particularly Ankara's new attempts to Exploit again Mass Migration for even More Money and Interventions inside Syria's Northern areas of Kurds who helped Fight ISIS' Deadly Islamist Terrorism targetting Civilians, and vis a vis EU Member Cyprus' Energy Sources, as he said in Reply to a Question raised on behalf of PACE's Biggest Group, that of ChristianDemocrats/EPP, by Experienced former Chairwoman of its Political affairs Committee and F. Foreign Minister, MEP Dora Bakogianni from Greece.

- The mainstream MEP had Denounced the Fact that, once again, "Turkey is putting Pressure on Europe", through "a New Great Migration Crisis", particularly "during the 3 Summer Months" of 2019, when more than "20.000 People arrived on the Greek Islands via Turkey", while "it's very clear" that Ankara's Authorities, not only "doN"t make No Effort to Stop that", but, evenmore, "on the Contrary, Facilitate this Migratory Flow", Because "Turkey wants a New Deal (i.e. in Addition to the 3 Billions € in full Grants Each Year, that EU already gave) : It Wants from Europe to Accept its Policy in Syria, and ...to be No Reaction to the flagrant Violation of Sovereign rights in the exclusive Economic zone of Cyprus".

- "You are absolutely Right to say that this is abused as a means of Pressure from Turkey", as "I'm fully Aware of what Greece is going through Today, since,  if Migratory Prssure mounts up towards Europe, the main thrust is at Stake in that Route from Eastern Mediterranean, nowadays", Replied the French President, who is currently Chairing also the CoE, for the period from May to November 2019 included.  

=> - First of all, I don't think that the Right Reply would be to Yield to that Pressure !", exerted from Turkey, he clearly stressed.

- Already, "There is an (EU) Work done with Turkey, when I wasN't yet elected (2015-2016), but Negotiations took place in 2015-2016 and a Deal was Agreed on 2016, which must be Respected", he reminded, and "this does Not require Additional Measures, at this Stage", Macron refused.

- "It's true that Turkey is Blackmailing Europe !", had, Previously, Warned the Experienced President of Europe's Biggest Political Party that of ChristianDemocrats/EPP, Joseph Daul, speaking at a 2016 Event organised by Strasbourg's University, when Ankara was initially Pressing the EU for that Deal inside a Bloody Islamist Terrorism-stricken Brussels, (See: ..., etc).

- In particular, "Anyway, Our (EU) Agenda on the North of Syria (i.e. on Syrian Kurdish Fighters against ISIS and/or other Islamist Deadly Terrorists cowardly Targetting Civilian People) must Not be Determined from that Turkish Pressure, at any case. Absolutely Not !", the French President strongly underlined.

 - "On the Contrary, we (Europe) have clear DisAgreements vis a vis Turkey on Syria", Macron stressed, adding, also, that "we have a Joint Work, in Istanbul Format : Germany, France, Russia, Turkey and UNO, which would allow to make Progress on Syria" normaly.

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+ "Concerning Migratory Policy (of the EU), what you called "Burdens' Sharing", it's a Necessity of our Migratory Policy, for me, which should, Now, reach a New Stage, with that New (EU) Commission", Macron went on to develop.

- In fact, "I think that we (EU) collectively Failed at the Beginning of that (Mass) Migratory Policy, vis a vis Greece, and vis a vis Italy, (not during these Last Months, when the Flows were, Comparatively, reduced, but in the Middle of the so-called "Mare Nostrum", at the Core of that [Mass)] Migratory Pressure, that Italy lived through, around 2015+ : At that moment, there was No Solidarity" at all.

 + And this European Solidarity still is, Nowadays, Imperfect. Very largely Incomplete".

 - Because "it Lacks, from my point of view" :

- "1st, a Migratory Policy vis a vis the Countries of Origin".

 - Because, we are speaking there of (EU's) External Borders in Eastern Mediterranean, but we have also to Build a real EU Joint Migratory Policy vis a vis the Countries of Origin, on this point.

- "2nd point : We Must have a Joint European Policy on Protecting our common (European) External Borders"

 - In particular, "the Protection of our Common (EU) External Borders, canNot burden Only the Country of the 1st Entry" by Mass Migrants.

 - Fex., "France has, since a long time, put the accent into Strengthening FRONTEX and hiring More Agents".

- Howeve, "there are Many Mecanisms of Joint Protection", he Highlighted, without specifying now.

- "But, at any case, we must Mutualize the Cost of that Protection", he stressed.

- Moreover, from my point of view, we cannot get away from this Debate on more or less Solidarity, but Only by Changing what were our Terms of Refernce" :

- "Until now, several Countries only strived to Extend the Duration of Responsibility concerning the Countries of 1st Entry, which was of 6 Months, i.e. going Against what you asked", he replied to MEP Bakogianis.

 - Indeed, "I think that we should have much More Financial Solidarity, with the Countries of 1st Entry, and have a much More "Common System", so that when somebody comes from somewhere Out of Europe, a Migrant, (a word which covers Various Situations), the Responsibility for him/her should lie on the (EU) Community". and Not Only be a Burden for the Country of 1st Entry".

 - "Otherwise, we have an UnAcceptable Situation, for most Countries of 1st Origin, and InHuman for Many Refugees !", he denounced.

=> So that, for me, the 3rd Point is to have a Real EU Solidarity, which is Far from being the case until now, and to consider that (Mass) Migration's Cost is a European Cost", Macron underlined.

 + 4rth Point is to Harmonize, inside Schengen's area, the modalities of Asylum and Return":  

- "Not just in order to alleviate the Burden of Countries of 1st Origin, but in order to be able to Regulate Free Movement, and to Fight against Smugglers", "so that a Stop its put to "this situation where people who haven't any chance to get Asylum, neverheless, Stay often 4 to 5 Years in the EU, and sometimes don't even Return at all, or the even more unacceptable situation of People who deserve Asylum, but are Obliged to wait 2 or 3 Years, before getting it", (Because of that overall situation).

- "Because we need also, a real European Policy for Return", he stressed.

  - "Yes, Welcome is Human, but only if there is a real Return policy", Macron warned.

=> So, "Yes for a more Efficient" EU Migratory Policy, which, for me, goes through More Financial Solidarity, and a joint European Mechanism on Asylum and Return", the French President resumed in conclusion.

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