EU ministers hold emergency talks in the wake of tensions at the Greek-Turkish borders

European Union countries offered more money on Wednesday for border policing in Greece and humanitarian aid in Syria’s Idlib, but they were in a bind over Turkey as they sought to avert a mass influx of migrants.

EU interior ministers met in Brussels on Wednesday for emergency talks, to be followed by foreign ministers on Thursday and Friday, as some 25,000 refugees and migrants gather on the Greek border, seeking to cross into Europe. That came after Turkey – citing the latest fighting in Syria – backed away from a 2016 deal with the EU to keep refugees and migrants away from Europe.

In a joint statement, EU ministers recognised “the increased migratory burden and risks Turkey is facing” but also denounced “Turkey’s use of migratory pressure for political purposes.” “This situation at EU’s external borders is not acceptable,” they said, in calling on Ankara to stick to the 2016 pact.

“Turkey is not an enemy, but people are not weapons either,” the EU’s top migration official, Margaritis Schinas, said in explaining that 700 million euros’ worth of extra EU funding for Greece would fortify the bloc’s external border there. The EU is also preparing to offer 60 million euros in new humanitarian aid to Idlib, diplomats said. The city has been the latest flashpoint in the nine-year-old war in Syria, where Russia-backed Syrian forces fight rebels supported by Turkey. Humanitarian efforts to support nearly 1 million people who fled the fighting have been overwhelmed, said the U.N. aid chief, Mark Lowcock.

EU member states are divided over Turkey. Greece and Cyprus push a tough line, focusing on border tensions and condemning what the bloc sees as Erdogan’s migration “blackmail”. Others are willing to offer further aid to support some 3.7 million Syrian refugees stranded in Turkey, on top of the 6 billion euros already granted in 2016.

“The right to asylum does not mean that Erdogan can send how many migrants he wants into the European Union,” EU Home Affairs Commissioner Ylva Johansson told journalists on Wednesday.

Full statement

The EU Council expresses its solidarity with Greece, Bulgaria, Cyprus and other member states which might be similarly affected, including in efforts to manage the EU’s external borders.

While the Council acknowledges the increased migratory burden and risks Turkey is facing on its territory and the substantial efforts it has made in hosting 3,7 million migrants and refugees, it strongly rejects Turkey’s use of migratory pressure for political purposes. This situation at EU’s external borders is not acceptable. The Council expects Turkey to implement fully the provisions of the 2016 joint statement with regard to all member states.

The EU and its member states remain determined to effectively protect EU’s external borders. In this regard, the EU and its member states will take all necessary measures, in accordance with EU and international law.

All member states, the Commission and EU agencies stand ready to strengthen their support to areas under pressure, including through the deployment of Frontex’s rapid border intervention and additional technical assistance.