European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced an additional €1 billion aid for Turkey’s Syrian refugee management in the country.
The aid was announced during a joint press conference with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara on Tuesday.
The funds were announced as intended to support healthcare, education, and migration management for refugees as well as sending Syrian refugees back to their home country. Von der Leyen stated that this financial support could adapt to “evolving conditions on the ground.”
“The lack of predictability demands utmost caution,” said von der Leyen. “One thing is very clear: all returns must be voluntary, safe and dignified.”
This announcement builds on the over 11 billion the EU has provided to Turkey since 2015 ostensibly to help the country administer to and shelter the millions of Syrians who had crossed into the country seeking safety.
However, investigations have shown that this money– the largest amount of humanitarian spending in the history of the bloc– is instead being used to hunt down migrants, detain them in horrific conditions, and then forcibly push them back over the country’s borders.
Turkey currently hosts millions of refugees, around 3.2 million of whom are from Syria.
“We expect the European Union to support returns to Syria,” said Erdoğan.
Beyond migration, Von der Leyen highlighted the importance of EU-Turkey relations, describing the relationship as “as rich as it is complex.”.
“I look forward to continuing our good cooperation both in supporting a Syrian-led and a Syrian-owned political transition and in deepening the relationship between Türkiye as a candidate country for the European Union,” said von der Leyen.
For his part Erdoğan also called for closer relations between Turkey and the EU. “There is a need, more than ever, for a stronger and more institutional relationship between Turkey and the EU,” he said.
