by Aggelos Skordas
Turkey’s Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu announced his country is suspending the bilateral agreement with Greece, which allows Athens to send migrants back to Turkey. This comes in response to the release of the eight Turkish servicemen who fled to Greece after the failed coup of July 2016 and Athens’ denial to extradite them.
Speaking to journalists in Antalya, Cavusoglu was quoted by Daily Sabah as saying that “there is a migrant deal with the European Union. This is being implemented. There is also a bilateral readmission deal with Greece. Now we have suspended this readmission deal. We will continue our work towards Greece after the final court decision," explaining that a separate agreement with the European Union is still in place.
According to the same sources, Cavusoglu reportedly estimated that the Greek government has the will to solve the issue but the judiciary system, which is under pressure from the West, is creating obstacles on the eight ex-soldiers return. The Turkish Foreign Minister was cited as saying the move was “unacceptable”.
On Monday it was announced that all eight Turkish servicemen who fled to Greece seeking asylum were released from custody. According to Greek law, the maximum detention period is 18 months, which ended at the end of May. They now reside in secret locations under strong police protection due to fears for their safety, while their asylum applications are still pending.
