Turkish Politics & Internal Affairs

[Worf]

At this rate turkey is going to be a full blown banana republic. Those we're crying about military coups just preformed a civil coup. What a joke....

 

[T-123456]

EU backs Turkey visa deal, but says conditions must be met

Turkey has long been pressing for visa-free travel to the European Union

The European Commission has given conditional backing for Turkish people to get visa-free travel inside Europe's passport-free Schengen area.

It says Turkey has made good progress on key conditions, but work remains to be done "as a matter of urgency".

The change could take effect from July, but first it requires approval by the European Parliament and member states.

The deal was offered in return for Turkey taking back migrants who crossed the Aegean Sea to Greece.

The EU fears that without it, Turkey will not control migration.

The Turkish foreign minister, Mevlut Cavusoglu, welcomed the recommendation, saying the visa proposals have opened a new page in Turkey's relations with the EU.

What is the Schengen agreement?

Turks look to EU to scrap visas

Image captionThousands of refugees - including children - are now housed in the Nizip camp in south-eastern Turkey

'Still work to be done'
The visa liberalisation deal remains controversial in a number of capitals across the EU, but the Commission praised Turkey for its progress in fulfilling its requirements, particularly in recent weeks.

Vice-President Frans Timmermans said: "There is still work to be done as a matter of urgency, but if Turkey sustains the progress made, they can meet the remaining benchmarks."

The Commission outlined several outstanding issues, with Turkey required to do more to tackle corruption and bring its laws on terrorism in line with European standards, among others.

Five benchmarks still to be met by Turkey:

• Corruption: Turkey must pass measures to prevent corruption, in line with EU recommendations
• Data protection: It must align national legislation on personal data protection with EU standards
• Europol: An agreement is to be concluded with the continent's law enforcement agency
• Judicial cooperation: It must work with all EU members on criminal matters
• Legislation on terrorism: Turkey is also required to bring its terror laws in line with European standards

Full European Commission Statement

The commission is also giving Turkey until the end of the year to upgrade its passports, so that they meet the latest biometric standards.

Mr Timmermans stressed that no Turkish citizen would enter the EU without a visa if they do not have a biometric passport with a facial image and fingerprint data.

He said: "I would rather have somebody at my border with a biometric passport where I can be sure that the person carrying the passport is actually mentioned in the passport, than a person with an old-fashioned passport and a paper visa."

The deal will scrap the requirement for Turks to get a three-month, short-stay Schengen visa for tourism or business trips.

Visa-free travel will apply to all EU Member States except for Ireland and the UK, and to the four Schengen associated countries - Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland.

But it will not grant Turks the right to get a job in Europe.

Separate to the deal with Turkey, the Commission also proposed granting visa-free travel to citizens of Kosovo.

The tiny Balkan state declared independence from Serbia in 2008 and is still not recognised by Belgrade and five EU states.

Under the plan, Kosovans with biometric passports would be able to enter the Schengen zone without a visa and stay for up to 90 days.

Migrant crisis role
Turkey has threatened to stop taking back migrants from Greece if the EU fails to deliver on visa liberalisation.

The large influx of migrants and refugees arriving in Europe from Turkey, and from North Africa, has caused a political crisis among EU states.

Under the EU-Turkey agreement, migrants who have arrived illegally in Greece since 20 March are to be sent back to Turkey if they do not apply for asylum or if their claim is rejected.

For each Syrian migrant returned to Turkey, the EU is to take in another Syrian who has made a legitimate request.

Turkey in numbers
78.7m

Population

• 11.1% Unemployment
• 2.75m Syrian refugees registered with UN
• 151 out of 180 countries on World Press Freedom Index

Source: Turkstat/UN
Reuters
Parliament's concerns

The deal will now be sent to the European Parliament, which has already said it will not vote on the proposal until the Commission confirms all of the conditions have been met.

Concerns have been raised in Parliament before that the visa-waiver looks like a reward for Turkey, because of its co-operation in the migrant crisis. It says Ankara falls short of many EU human rights benchmarks.

MEPs accept that Turkey is a "key strategic partner" for the EU. But they say reforms have slowed down in Turkey in many areas, including freedom of speech and judicial independence.

MEPs have also voiced concern about continuing fighting in south-eastern Turkey between government troops and Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) rebels, whom the government in Ankara describes as "terrorists".

A note on terminology: The BBC uses the term migrant to refer to all people on the move who have yet to complete the legal process of claiming asylum. This group includes people fleeing war-torn countries such as Syria, who are likely to be granted refugee status, as well as people who are seeking jobs and better lives, who governments are likely to rule are economic migrants.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-36199811

The OP stated that its already decided,which it is not.
There are 5 more points left to be done,thats why i asked if it is official.

 

[T-123456]

Dude just forced out the prime minister of Turkey

Erdogan is the one with absolute power,he can make or brake as he wishes,we shouldnt be so surprized about it.
Everything will stay the same with new names.

 

[Kambojaric]

You are a Bulgarian Turk???

Interesting documentary by AlJazeera on the plight of Bulgarian Turks....I wonder how accurate it is though !

Wow check out the butthurt of the Euro Right wing brigade on this documentary haha. Turkey should do more to support the Turks in Bulgaria.

 

[Mucahit]

The OP stated that its already decided,which it is not.
There are 5 more points left to be done,thats why i asked if it is official.

Legislation on terrorism: Turkey is also required to bring its terror laws in line with European standards

What the hell does that mean? l just hope we don't start another *ÇÖZÜM süreci* because of this.

 

[T-123456]

Legislation on terrorism: Turkey is also required to bring its terror laws in line with European standards

What the hell does that mean? l just hope we don't start another *ÇÖZÜM süreci* because of this.

We would have to take a look at the terror laws in the EU but i dont think they could ''force'' us to another *ÇÖZÜM süreci*.

 

[flamer84]

Wow check out the butthurt of the Euro Right wing brigade on this documentary haha. Turkey should do more to support the Turks in Bulgaria.

That video is pure trash.I'm glad that most European users saw it for what it was.It's downvoted to hell,rightfully so,pure bad taste propaganda.

 

[Mucahit]

We would have to take a look at the terror laws in the EU but i dont think they could ''force'' us to another *ÇÖZÜM süreci*.

exactly what i mean, you know how Europeans stand to this.
For them the kurds are innocent, they don't do anything even if they do it doesn't matter because Turks are getting killed.
lt makes them happy.

This deal is a dead end for our country.
Since the deal we didn't let any refugees into Europe and yet nothing happened.

Does anyone think that the Europeans will hold their part of the bargain? Cause i don't think so.
l mean we could've had a chance with other Presidents.

But with the current one it seems impossible, dude the guy just throw out the freaking Prime Minister just because he wanted to act of his own.

Erdoğan always talk about the military coups and say how bad they're yet he did a civil coup.
The irony is to strong.

Anyways i don't want 6 million syrians living in Turkey we already have enough of them.
They already changed the demografic structure of some cities.

 

[Deliorman]

You are a Bulgarian Turk???

Interesting documentary by AlJazeera on the plight of Bulgarian Turks....I wonder how accurate it is though !

Historians should talk more accurately about that as some of events mentioned about in the video happened hundreds of years ago. Bulgaria got Liberated from Ottoman Rule in 1878 after the Russian- Turkish War of 1877- 1878. Later in 1878 was the Berlin Congress where the Great powers and some Balkan states (excluding Bulgaria) decided what to happen with some of Ottoman Empires's territories- Bosnia was given to Austria- Hungary, Cyprus to Britain, Big parts of land where a lot of Bulgarians lived (though not a majority everywhere as the Balkans are a mixed mosaic of different ethnicities) were left under Ottoman rule, Serbian and Romanian rule But Bulgaria was "Liberated" and got officially independent from the Ottoman Empire in 1908. The results of the Berlin Congress was that it led to a lot of wars on the Balkans (the two greatest were the 2 consecutive Balkan Wars in 1912 to 1914). World War 1 started from the Balkans... and we all know what happened after it- Hitler, Stalin, Israel- Palestinian conflict who changed the whole Middle East, a Cold War that changed the whole world and the results of em that we see today.

I am sure a lot of atrocities have been done against the Turks and Muslims that have been living on these territories for centuries. Bulgarians like to only talk about what we did to them but they can not admit that a lot of Turks were expelled and killed during all the wars that happened between us. Historical books are written in the same pattern all around the world you know: "We are angels- They are evil and are our enemies" so most people don't know the bad things their nation did in the past. Every war, every conquest was done by spilling blood not with roses and paper hearts... every army does bad stuff to innocent people especially in the 19th - 20th century.

Before Bulgaria's liberation around 40% of the population on those lands Bulgarians considers historically their was Turkish/ Muslim. I'm not counting the big jewish, greek, gypsy, armenian, vlach etc. communities that used to live, or still live on those lands. That was 140 years ago... Decade After the war of 1878 the percentage decreased to 20% of the total population. Right now 8-10% of the total population in Bulgaria considers it self Turkish... that's without the 450 000 Turks with Bulgarian passports in Turkey and around Europe. Turks in Bulgaria survived in the big Rhodope and Easter Balkan mountains and Northeast Bulgaria where probably Bulgarians couldn't get us as the Turkish population in there is considerably more but now a lot of Turks live in bigger cities too in a lot of whom they used to be a majority before the Bulgarian Liberation. We were 1/3 of the population on those lands before and we would have been the majority in here now if we consider that Turks in the last century have always had higher fertility rates as an ethnicity than Bulgarians- not only in Bulgaria but also in Turkey.

That's s German map of the Balkans, you can see how diverse it is but if you don't know Bulgaria now is the area with a majority red- yellow- brown colors. Red is for Turks, Dark red for Tatars (our brothers), Yellow for Bulgarians, Brown for Pomaks (Muslim Slavs majority of whom considers us brothers).

An this is the areas where Turks are the majority in the country right now. Of course Turks can also be found all around the country:

I'm telling that again, historians from both sides should study and give accurate facts about our history together- about our common wins and losses. I know history is painful but the dead won't come back from the past so let them rest in peace and try live together as normal people. I want our countries to live in peace because I love both countries and as a Turk from Bulgaria I want both countries to prosper. Even as a big minority we have always worked for that Country, we have won medals in sports for it, we pay our taxes, we produce and take part in the economy of the country we helped Bulgaria to get built no matter what Bulgarian Governments did to us in the last 14 decades- especially during Communism- not regular Bulgarian people that we have lived together with peacefully for centuries. Communist destroyed Bulgaria and their sons are still doing it now. We have never spit on the flag, we have never fought against the State, we have never used it's resources for free as some other "nations" do to their countries. This is why we deserve respect from this country.

 

[leftfordead]

I really wanted to Live and work in Turkey , which is one of my favorite Country , but of course not as a Refugee
Apart from Germany , Canada and Norway , Turkey is one of my dream country to live in

 

[Mucahit]

I could not care less about davutoglu. at least he was the last puppet of the paralel illuminati gülen movement. now he is gone. and power is with the muslims.

davutoglu was brainwashed in gülen Schools.

AKTROLLS already started with this? *-*

 

[Mucahit]

do you feel butthurt mr. wannabe mücahit paralelci gülen pawn?

bow down in front of true MÜCAHIT Erbakan.

you got me mate

 

[T-123456]

exactly what i mean, you know how Europeans stand to this.
For them the kurds are innocent, they don't do anything even if they do it doesn't matter because Turks are getting killed.
lt makes them happy.

This deal is a dead end for our country.
Since the deal we didn't let any refugees into Europe and yet nothing happened.

Does anyone think that the Europeans will hold their part of the bargain? Cause i don't think so.
l mean we could've had a chance with other Presidents.

But with the current one it seems impossible, dude the guy just throw out the freaking Prime Minister just because he wanted to act of his own.

Erdoğan always talk about the military coups and say how bad they're yet he did a civil coup.
The irony is to strong.

Anyways i don't want 6 million syrians living in Turkey we already have enough of them.
They already changed the demografic structure of some cities.

If they dont allowe visa free travel,its their loss,that is if our government stands with its word.
We should flood Europe with refugees in that case.
And why are you getting angry at Erdogan,its his Kingdom,isnt it he the Sultan of AKP,he can do whatever he pleases,
The days of being surprized about the way things are going in Turkiye are history.
Aga nederse o olur.

 

[Deliorman]

And please a Romanian guy who doesn't know a shit about life and history of Bulgaria, not to talk about the Turks in Bulgaria or at least try to do it after you have a contact with Turks from here too. Because my parents still remember how they changed their names by force, how many innocent people were killed and hurt when Commies were doing that... They still remember how Commies were changing even the names on the Turkish tomb stones in graveyards with Bulgarian names and how many people were forced to leave their homeland forced by the Police and the Military. If it wasn't for the Communists most of my family would have still be living in Bulgaria not hundreds and thousands of miles away.

 

[Mucahit]

If they dont allowe visa free travel,its their loss,that is if our government stands with its word.
We should flood Europe with refugees in that case.
And why are you getting angry at Erdogan,its his Kingdom,isnt it he the Sultan of AKP,he can do whatever he pleases,
The days of being surprized about the way things are going in Turkiye are history.
Aga ne nederse o olur.

You're right man, i actually dont care anymore at this point.
lf this is what Turkish people want then there's nothing to say.

l just hope we end this whole terror thing here but even that seems kinda delusive.