Is Turkey Visa-free Travel To The Schengen Area Is Back On The Agenda ... So Is It Possible?
WHEN WILL TURKEY GET VISA-FREE TRAVEL TO THE SCHENGEN AREA?
Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said: "Turkish visa liberalisation can be implemented, this is a promise" and the possibility of visa-free travel in the Schengen Area has come to the table again. What happened in this process, which was raised by the refugee crisis? What does the EU want? Is visa-free travel possible?
Relations with the EU have been Tidal since time immemorial, while Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu announcement of “Turkey visa liberalisation” on January 18 caused the critical issue to fall back on the agenda. Cavusoglu said: "If I said today that ‘new chapters can be opened immediately’ related to the negotiations, we would not be telling the truth. Not because we don't want it, but because there are problems with enlargement policies because the European Union doesn't want it. But visa liberalisation can come to life, that's a promise,” he said.
RAISED BY REFUGEE CRISIS
In 2013, when the refugee crisis broke out, in which refugees fleeing the civil war in Syria and seeking to enter the EU illegally used Turkey as a transit zone, the Readmission Agreement was signed, one of the articles of this agreement was to apply visa liberalisation to citizens of the Republic of Turkey on short-term trips to the EU. Accordingly, citizens of the Republic of Turkey would receive the right to travel 90 days every 180 days.
KEY TO FREE MOVEMENT: TURKEY - SCHENGEN
Luxembourg has 26 European countries under the Schengen Treaty, signed in 1985. Norway, Iceland and Switzerland, which are not EU members, are also in the Schengen area, while the Republic of Ireland, among the EU countries, does not use Schengen. EU member Croatia, Cyprus, Romania and Bulgaria are in the process of being nominated to enter the Schengen Area.
On 18 March 2016, when the Joint Action Plan associated with this agreement was implemented, the refugee agreement included financial assistance of 6 billion euros to Turkey in two equal installments, ease of visa for Turkish citizens for EU countries and acceleration of Turkey's EU entry process. He said the possibility of a positive outcome in the negotiations, which have been re-raised, would be possible.
“By re-creating an agenda with the European Union, in fact, it is desirable to create the basis for negotiations and create engagement by re-bringing the old agenda to the forefront. In today's conditions, we can't call it ‘useless’. Because if a dynamic of negotiations is created between the parties, regardless of whether this is realistic or not, there is a possibility that this dynamic of negotiations will revive the relations between Turkey and the EU, which have been frozen for quite some time and have a negative image.” was said.
EU CUSTOMS UNION ISSUE MORE IMPORTANT
"Here, too, expectations and the flow of Information need to be managed very carefully. Because "we have reopened this agenda and it has not happened again" by saying that the whole relationship should be prevented from reaching a point that will cause more damage, " said Prof. Dr. "There are already two common issues that Turkey can discuss constructively with the EU and have overlapping interests. One is the issue of visa liberalisation. The other is undoubtedly the process known as ‘renewal of the customs union’ in public opinion,” he said.
”The second is more important than the first, “Han said.” in the second, the EU shows that today Turkey is not ready and willing to hold these talks with Turkey, which it considers to be making progress on certain criteria."
T.C. 72 criteria that must be met when placing the visa liberalization roadmap on the official website of the European Union presidency of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs;
Document Security, Migration Management, Public Order and safety, Fundamental Rights, Repatriation Of Irregular Migrants, he notes that it consists of themes.
So far, 67 of these 72 criteria have been met, leaving 5 critical items. The 5 items in question are as follows:
In line with EU recommendations, measures should be taken to prevent corruption.
National legislation on the protection of personal data in accordance with EU standards needs to be harmonized.
There needs to be a deal with Europol.
Turkey needs to work with all EU members on criminal issues.
Turkey must comply with terrorism laws that are in line with European standards.
LIKE BANKER BILO...
Prof. Dr. “The EU will probably raise the same issues,” Khan says at this point. Han also said,” because it is the admissions center, as in Banker Bilo, "Look, we didn't do these things, but ask why we didn't do them," theses that will suggest that we are very right in saying and not doing them-regardless of the rightness or injustice of these theses - do not seem to result in the opposite party confirming US."
TURKEY PRESIDENT ERDOGAN ALSO STRESSED
Addressing the issue in the early days of 2021, President Erdogan also said that the customs union should be updated, visa liberalisation for Turkish citizens and steps should be taken in membership negotiations. President Erdogan stressed that it is necessary to restore mutual trust, re-operate consultation mechanisms, and end exclusionary, discriminatory actions and rhetoric against Turkey, a candidate country in the negotiation process other than a neighbor.
"Citizens of the Republic of Turkey, who must pay 80 Euros, except for the service fees paid to brokerage firms for each Schengen visa application, will not have to pay this fee with the right to free movement."
Citizens of the Republic of Turkey, who must pay 80 Euros, except for the service fees paid to brokerage firms for each Schengen visa application, will not have to pay this fee with the right to free movement.
In accordance with the memorandum, there was no progress on articles other than the Europol agreement, which is under discussion about granting Turkey a visa exemption, Turkey decided to grant visa liberalisation to citizens of 5 EU member states and the United Kingdom at the Brexit stage in February 2020.
Citizens of Austria, Belgium, the Netherlands, Spain, Poland and the United Kingdom, members of the Schengen area of the European Union, have been granted visa exemption for 90 days every 180 days on their tourist trips to Turkey from March 2, 2020.
Foreign Ministry Spokesman Hami Aksoy
“With this step, it is aimed to increase our tourism potential with the countries mentioned, as well as to further develop our commercial, economic and cultural relations,” Aksoy said in a written statement, but the pandemic dropped the accounts at home on tourism.
GERMANY MERKEL: WE WANT A POSITIVE AGENDA
Speaking at the EU leaders 'summit in October 2020, Angela Merkel said:" We want a positive agenda with Turkey. I have met very often with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan recently. In relations, a positive agenda is in the interest of both sides. The issue of visa liberalisation will be discussed in December,” he said. Merkel pointed out that Turkey is a neighbour of the EU and a member of NATO, while stressing that the issue of visa liberalisation “must be worked out robustly” by December.
At this point, the professor also drew attention to the dynamics of relations Dr. Ahmet November Khan said: "the dynamic here is very simple. You don't have to be a social scientist for that. Before you is a merci. He's got what you want. The decision will be there. They set criteria for making that decision. They also unilaterally have the authority to accept these criteria. Therefore, it is important that you tell yourself, but it is also impossible to force yourself to accept a party that says, ‘you have never fulfilled them.’ It's a matter of whether you're right or wrong.
TURKEY MINISTER: VISA LIBERALIZATION CAN COME TO LIFE
The visa liberalisation dialogue Memorandum and Readmission Agreement were signed on December 16, 2013, and the following discourses were noted if it was necessary to return to that critical day. The Foreign Minister at the time, said: “We have three stages ahead of us. The first is the stage of psychological revolution, which will begin today. Perceptions will change, visa liberalisation and a new era of communication between the peoples of Turkey and the EU will begin. In the second phase,work between institutions will accelerate and our capacity will increase over the next 3-3.5 years. Most importantly, in the long term, the peoples of Turkey and Europe will engage in intense interaction,” he said.
Speaking at the ceremony, EU interior Commissioner said that an important step has been taken for cooperation between Turkey and the EU. “we are launching two important initiatives in parallel and thus uniting our peoples and building mutual trust. These will have an extremely important impact on our bilateral relations, and our citizens will be able to see the positive effects of this in the near term,” he said.
