Turkey's Foreign Ministry responds to reports of refugee deal with UK

Photo: AA/File

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has refuted the reports of a refugee deal between the UK.

According to reports in the UK press, Foreign Secretary Liz Truss, who is one of the candidates for the office of the prime minister, may demand an agreement with Turkey similar to the agreement done with Rwanda on asylum partnership.

Responding to the news reports, Tanju Bilgiç, spokesperson of the Foreign Ministry, said, "We hope that these claims that were published in reference to Ms. Truss are baseless."

In April, the UK and Rwanda reached a 120 million pound deal that would see asylum seekers attempting to enter the UK being sent to the East African country for resettlement.

Bilgiç said in a statement that Turkey is already hosting the largest number of refugees in the world for the last 8 years.

"It is therefore out of question for Turkey to shoulder more burden or to be a part of an initiative, at third countries' request, that does not comply with international regulations on right to asylum," he said.

"Accordingly, we invite all countries to fulfill their international obligations and assume equal responsibility on migration issues."

Turkey has been a key transit point for irregular migrants who want to cross into Europe to start new lives, especially those fleeing war and persecution in their countries.

An agreement for Syrian refugees between Turkey and the European Union (EU) has been in place since 2015. Accordingly, Turkey keeps the refugees from crossing into European countries in exchange for financial support.

Last year, the UK media claimed that London and Ankara would sign a similar deal to set up a "refugee hub" in Turkey, which was refuted by the authorities in Ankara. (VK)