The Faculty of Law at İstanbul Kultur University (İKU) organized "Turkey-Europe Friendship in Difficult Times" conference. The conference, which Michael Roth, Germany’s Minister of State for Europe, participated in as speaker, was held on Monday, May 7th at the Şirinevler campus.

"IT IS IMPORTANT TO MAINTAIN COMMON INTERESTS"

Assessing Turkey's EU process in his speech, Roth said, "We need to understand where Turkey is positioning itself at the moment. Since 1949, Turkey has been in the European Council. Turkey has also been a NATO member since 1952. I think the most difficult and most important part of Europe-Turkey relations are the relations between EU and Turkey. Of course, the EU and Turkey are very good partners. This is evident in economic figures. The EU is currently Turkey's most important trade partner. They have common interests and maintaining them is important for both countries.”

“WE NEED TO MAKE A COLLECTIVE EFFORT AGAINST TERROR TO PROTECT OUR CITIZENS”

Emphasizing that the EU sees a common interest in continuing cooperation with Turkey, Roth stated, "We need to act together for common problems such as terrorism. Unfortunately, Turkey is the country that has experienced the most losses due to terror among the EU countries. Many Germans understood this only in January 2017, when the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin was decorated with Turkish flags. The aim was to condemn the brutal attack at the Reina Night Club in İstanbul. We must work together to protect our citizens and this liberal society model against terrorists. I think we agree on that.”

"THE EU MUST GIVE 3 BN EUR TO TURKEY TO HELP REFUGEES"

Stating that we need to help Syrian refugees together, Michael Rother said, "There are 3.5 million refugees in Turkey. Your country has taken on one of the biggest tasks in order to overcome this humanitarian crisis in Syria and heal the wounds of the war. We must shoulder this burden together as this is not the problem of just one country. I think the EU should give 3 billion euros in aid to help refugees in Turkey. We have to help displaced people. Our priority is to establish peace in Syria once and for all.”

“TURKEY’S MOTIVES FOR A MILITARY OPERATION WERE NOT CONVINCING”

Noting that Turkey's invasion of Afrin caused great concern, Minister Roth said, “This operation caused different opinions in society and our parliament. Turkey’s motives in this operation did not convince us. We would have expected Turkey to more closely listen to our concerns about this matter as our close friend and NATO ally.”

"THE EU IS A SOURCE OF HOPE FOR YOU"

Listing the essential fundamental principles for them in terms of the EU process, Minister Roth said, "A functioning rule of law, independent and national courts, fair trial, the observance of human rights are all factors that form the basis of Europe. Without freedom of expression and freedom of press, this basis is bound to be destroyed. As a friend of Turkey and Turkish people, I can clearly say that the EU should not close the door. As I know from my talks with Turkish people, the EU is a source of hope for you. You consider the EU as an important authority in terms of social progress, democracy, and rule of law. The accession process will remain suspended as long as the political situation in Turkey does not change.” Pointing out that Erasmus program between universities should be supported, Minister Roth said, "The EU has doubled the budget allocated for this. The most important potential of EU-Turkey relations lies is in the relations to be established with students.”