UPDATE - 'Europe should respect international law'

UPDATES WITH MORE QUOTES FROM TURKISH FOREIGN MINISTER AND HIS BRITISH COUNTERPART

By Busra Nur Bilgic Cakmak

ANKARA (AA) - Greece and EU countries should respect international law in treating refugees, Turkish foreign minister said on Tuesday.

“Turkey has met its requirements arising out of the Geneva Convention and of course, we will continue to do that. But we have seen so far, unfortunately, the borders are closed and the asylum seekers have been suspended, which is against international law,” said Mevlut Cavusoglu in a press conference with his British counterpart Dominic Raab in the capital Ankara.

“Greece and the European Union countries are trying to escape from their international responsibilities, but they should really not,” Cavusoglu stressed.

“We do not have an obligation to forcefully keep anyone in Turkey,” he added.

But the “European countries have an obligation to receive the international protection applications of the asylum seekers who turn up at their doors and to provide protection to those that are eligible, just as Turkey fulfilled this obligation,” said Cavusoglu.

"The latest developments in Idlib have further increased the existing migratory pressure on our country. We have expressed in various platforms that our country cannot take a new migratory flow. And we have also asked for solidarity.

The international community, unfortunately, turned a deaf ear to these calls," he also said.

“We see the borders are being closed off, the asylum applications are being suspended in a way that is against international law,” he noted.

Cavusoglu also called on the EU institutions to respect the common values of Europe and protect the human rights of the asylum seekers.

-'Concerned' by Russia, regime's actions

For his part, Raab said: “The first and overriding responsibility for humanitarian suffering is the Syrian regime and Russia.

“We are gravely concerned by the significant escalation in military action by Russia and the Syria regime in the northwest, we condemn these actions as flagrant violations of international law and indeed, basic human decency,” he added.

Raab also voiced support for Turkey’s efforts to reestablish the cease-fire and “to protect those innocent civilians fleeing the regime’s monstrous assault,” in Idlib.

“The Syrian conflict has been one of the most destructive in recent human history. And we want the war to end as quickly as possible.

“Only a political settlement in line with UN Security Council Resolution 2254 can deliver lasting peace in Syria,” Raab added.

Raab also said the U.K. is boosting some 89 million pounds ($113.8 million) to organizations who are delivering humanitarian aid inside Syria and Idlib.

He also conveyed his condolences to Turkey after a regime attack martyred 34 Turkish soldiers in Idlib, northwestern Syria, on Feb. 27.

Referring to the period after Brexit, Raab said a free trade agreement in 2020 will be the U.K.’s priority and said his country will work closely with Turkey on areas such as defense, security, and trade.

“I think that [Brexit] would be a major contribution to a strong Turkey-UK economic relationship and help boost our trading partnership, which is already worth around 18 billion pounds each year,” he added.