Scholz due in Istanbul for defense, migration talks

BRUSSELS

Germany's Chancellor Olaf Scholz has said that he will discuss migration and defense cooperation during his visit to Türkiye this weekend.

Scholz is expected to pay a visit to Türkiye on Oct. 19, with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan set to receive the German leader in the Turkish metropolis Istanbul.

“We will be discussing many issues. The issue of migration is of course always one of them, and the fact that the European Union and Türkiye are working together on this is also right and reasonable” he told reporters in Brussels at the end of a summit of EU leaders on Oct. 17.

“I have always supported this, and repeatedly asked the European Union to extend the relevant agreements,” he said, referring to the 2016 EU-Türkiye migration agreement, which effectively stopped irregular refugee flows into Europe through the Aegean Sea. Ankara, however, has repeatedly criticized its European partners for not honoring their commitments.

As part of the deal, the EU had promised to accelerate Türkiye’s EU accession process, start negotiations on modernizing the Customs Union and provide visa-free travel for Turkish nationals within the Schengen area.

Scholz said during his visit to Istanbul, they will discuss various aspects of EU-Türkiye cooperation, enhancing economic ties and good neighborly relations in the region.

Asked about Türkiye’s interest in purchasing Eurofighter Typhoon jets, Scholz confirmed it will also be on the agenda.

“Of course, we always discuss the supply of weapons to our NATO partner,” he said, adding that the U.K. is currently holding talks with the Turkish government on the potential sale of the Eurofighters.

“This is at a very early stage, and that is why we said, ‘let’s negotiate,’” he said, noting that Germany has not yet given its final approval.

Eurofighter Typhoon jets are jointly produced by the U.K., Germany, Italy and Spain.

Germany has approved a document and given a preliminary green light for the sale of 40 Eurofighter jets to Türkiye, thereby, initiating technical negotiations, according to recent media reports.