OREANDA-NEWS. Turkey will close its borders with the European Union for refugees only if the latter fulfills its promises to Ankara. This was announced on March 11 by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

“At the summit of the EU leaders on March 26, we will impart our expectations again. Until we get what was promised, the current situation will continue,” the politician stated. Erdogan emphasized that Ankara has fulfilled its obligations to the EU on the migration deal of 2016, but in return has not received any financial support for refugees or the abolition of visas.

The Turkish leader has repeatedly threatened to open borders if a security zone is not created in the north of Syria, and the West does not provide Ankara with the assistance promised in 2016. In February 2020, Turkish authorities claimed that they were no longer able to restrain the flow of refugees, the number of which had reached at least 3.7 million. On the same day, several thousand illegal migrants started moving to the border with Greece.