WE WANT VISA EXEMPTION, NOT FACILITATION

Making evaluations about the decision taken by the European Commission on defining the framework of the visa facilitation for Turkish citizens before the meeting on 26 April 2012, Minister for EU Affairs and Chief Negotiator Egemen Bagis said “It is the natural right of Turkish citizens to travel visa-free to European countries.” 

In the statement he made to the members of the press in Istanbul, Minister Bagis said that they had not made concessions about the visa issue, and continued his words as follows:

“We have clearly set forth our expectations to the European Union. We don’t want visa facilitation, we want visa exemption. It is the natural right of the citizens of the Republic of Turkey to travel visa-free to the European countries. The citizens of no other negotiating country have to get visa. Likewise, we, as a member of the Customs Union, have had the right to travel visa-free to the European Union countries in accordance with the Ankara Agreement signed by Inonu. Unfortunately, the mentality who staged the 1980 coup d’état renounced some of our rights. Thus, these unjust and unreasonable visas are being required from the Turkish citizens today. Now we are waiting for the European Commission to receive mandate from the Member States for visa exemption to be initiated with Turkey.”