World giving 'better support' for safe return of refugees: Turkish foreign minister

ANTALYA, Turkey

The international community is showing “better support” for the safe return of refugees to their countries of origin, Turkey’s foreign minister said on Sunday.

“We have now started to receive better support from the international community for the safe return of refugees to their countries. They (have) understood how serious this issue is,” Mevlut Cavusoglu told journalists in the Turkish resort city of Antalya.

“We are working with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees to repatriate refugees to their countries, especially Syria.”

He said the initiative has been started by Syria’s neighboring countries that are hosting the majority of Syrian refugees, including Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, and Iraq.

Cavusoglu emphasized the need to pursue projects that create employment and provide returnees' access to quality education and health care, as done in Syria’s northwestern Idlib region.

Europe has been against the reconstruction of Syria, the Turkish foreign minister added.

“It’s true, rebuilding a country or a place while the war continues is unrealistic. We all have a clear stance on the (Assad) regime, but meeting basic needs on the ground is not rebuilding a country,” he said.

“The same is true for Afghanistan, but due to the current situation there, it is neither right nor possible to send people (back) immediately.”

He said the COVID-19 pandemic and the consequent economic difficulties have forced more people to leave their countries.

“If this (migration) is a global problem, we must work together as the international community to solve it,” Cavusoglu stressed.

*Writing by Busra Nur Cakmak