Turkish mayor arranges free bus services for refugees to the border with Greece
That announcement got here after 33 Turkish troopers had been killed in a Syrian authorities airstrike in Idlib province on Thursday.
Specialists say Turkey needs the EU to stress Russia to cease supporting Damascus in Syria and agree to a ceasefire.
Tanju Özcan, the mayor of Bolu, mentioned he would lay on buses for as many refugees who wished to get to the Greek border.
Upon leaving Bolu, he added, the service would journey the 550km route to Edirne, a Turkish area on the border with Greece.
He mentioned: “We ready a plan with our colleagues and we’re dedicated to arranging free buses for the refugees in Bolu in direction of the border city of Edirne.
“Refugees willing to go to Edirne can apply to the Bolu municipality and its branches. We are ready to assure the transport whatever the number [of refugees] is.”
Ankara’s transfer would break a pact made between the EU and Turkey in 2016 wherein the latter agreed to curb the variety of refugees and migrants travelling to Europe.
However Turkey’s turnaround on this pact has been prompted by current escalations in Syria – most lately the deaths of 33 Turkish troopers in an airstrike on Thursday in Idlib – which have rekindled fears {that a} additional refugee disaster might be on the horizon.
“Ankara wants the EU to do more to pressure Russia to stop supporting the Syrian government and agree to a ceasefire, and for the EU to provide more financial support to cope with refugees,” Luigi Scazzieri, a analysis fellow at the Centre for European Reform, instructed Euronews.
He added: “Turkey knows that Europe does not want refugees and is saying it will let them through to Europe in order to push the EU to help it manage refugees and hoping that Europe will pressure Russia to de-escalate in Syria.”
In the meantime, the EU has referred to as on Turkey to “honour its commitments” to the 2016 pact, whereas one MEP has mentioned the tactic is “dreadful”.
Dutch politician Kati Piri mentioned: “How this dreadful act, however, could justify using Syrian refugees as blackmail towards EU is beyond comprehension.”