German Chancellor Angela Merkel's visit to Turkey for talks with Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan may be characterized as an emergency measure, which Germany had to undertake on the issue of refugees from the Middle East, Turkish political scientist and professor at the Middle East Technical University, Huseyin Bagci, told Vestnik Kavkaza.
On October 18, after the talks with Erdogan, Merkel said that both countries are interested in a "fair share of the burden" and will seek opportunities for a migration load balance to overcome the current crisis.
According to Huseyin Bagci, the negotiations showed that the problem of refugees has finally moved into the political arena, allowing Turkey to get political dividends from cooperation with Europe. "In fact, Merkel arrived in Turkey with proposals which are worth their weight in gold, such as the simplification of the visa regime for Turkish citizens, so the migration problem has turned out to be Ankara's goose that lays the golden eggs," he said.
Germany will also receive the benefits of cooperation, as Turkey's policy on the migration issue is opening up new possibilities for Germany. "In this regard, today there is a chance to bring relations between the EU and Turkey out of the period of recession. Let me remind you that in 2009 Guenther Oettinger, the former European official, said that the EU will need Turkey more than Turkey will need the EU. Merkel's visit confirms this," Huseyin Bagci noted.
"In addition, by expanding ties with Turkey, Merkel is trying to increase the influence of Germany in the Middle East. Russia and Germany, in fact, have become the new players in world geopolitics. Germany has every opportunity to become the most influential country in Syria in 10 years. I'm sure that Damascus will also be connected to the Berlin-Baghdad railway line," the expert expects.
Huseyin Bagci predicts that Berlin will introduce controlled immigration soon after reaching an agreement with Ankara.
Cihan News Agency's chief editor Faruk Akkan said that the main purpose of Angela Merkel's visit is "to stop the flow of migrants to Europe." "Instead, she promised financial assistance amounting $3 billion. Today there are about 2 million refugees in Turkey. Germany requests that another 3 million ne placed, bringing the total number of migrants in Turkey to 5 million. Merkel's main request is to prevent these 3 million from going to Europe," he explained.
