Turkey praises Germany’s contribution to betterment of Turkish-EU relations

ANKARA

Turkish Deputy Foreign Minister Faruk Kaymakci on Wednesday praised Germany’s contribution to the advancement of relations between Turkey and the European Union.

Addressing a webinar on Turkish-German relations and prospects for the post-Merkel era, Kaymakci drew attention to the special ties between the two countries.

Historical ties, cooperation in commerce and investment, the NATO alliance and the large Turkish diaspora living in Germany a play role in the special ties between Germany and Turkey, he noted.

Germany, being the most important pillar and biggest net contributor to the EU budget, also played a positive role in returning to a calmer state of affairs the disputes over the Aegean, Cyprus and the Eastern Mediterranean after the escalation in the summer of 2020, Kaymakci noted.

Referring to remarks by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan that Turkey will soon ratify the Paris Agreement on climate change, he noted that Germany is an essential partner of the country in green transformation.

Kaymakci also commented on the update of the customs union agreement between Turkey and the bloc.

“We hope that the new German government will prioritize this issue, as the update would also greatly benefit German businesses and EU companies,” he said.

Reminding that Turkey and the EU will initiate the High-Level Dialogue Mechanism in two weeks, he stressed that visa-free travel of Turkish citizens will be among the top matters to be discussed.

If Turkish citizens are given this right, at least 20 million of them will be included in the tourism, services, transportation and business sectors in Europe, Kaymakci argued.

Another important issue to be addressed is the irregular migration issue, he said, noting that Turkey anticipates a new accord on the matter, to which the EU and Germany actively contribute.

*Writing by Ahmet Gencturk