According to UNCHR, over 850,000 migrants and refugees crossed the Aegean Sea from Turkey to Greece in 2015, leading to huge pressure along Greece’s external border and on its reception systems. Against this background, the EU-Turkey Statement was agreed in March 2016 as an instrument for improving migration management along the Eastern Mediterranean route and curbing arrivals to the EU.
On the third anniversary since its adoption,this Policy Dialogue aimed to take stock of the Statement’s achievements, as well as its shortcomings, in the wider context of the EU’s migration management agenda. In particular, speakers focused on some critical issues resulting from its implementation inlcuding the continued problems in reception centres on the Aegean islands and the impact on Turkey. The discussion took also into account the EU-Turkey Statement’s broader future and its potential effect on Turkey-EU relations.
Speakers included: Marie De Somer, Head of EU Migration and Diversity programme, European Policy Centre, Catherine Woollard, Secretary General, ECRE, Abdullah Ayaz, Director General for Migration Management, Ministry of Interior, Republic of Turkey, Andreas Papastavrou, Permanent Representative of Greece to the European Union, Raphael Shilhav, Deputy Head of EU Advocacy Office; EU Migration Policy Advisor, Oxfam International.