Bulgarians Prefer EU and NATO Over Russia, New Poll Reveals
A recent survey in Bulgaria reveals a clear preference among citizens for the European Union and NATO over Russia, with nearly twice as many respondents supporting the Western alliances
Turkish EU Minister and Chief Negotiator Volkan Bozkir said on Thursday that Ankara will not readmit migrants who are already on the Greek islands.
Bozkir noted that the proposed readmission agreement with the EU, which had been reached at the summit on Monday, will only be applicable to migrants who will come starting from a certain date after their evacuation.
On Monday, the EU and Turkey reached an agreement in principle to curb the migrant flow.
In return for readmitting all irregular migrants, Turkey was promised a financial assistance of EUR 3 B, which could possibly be expanded to EUR 6 B.
The EU also promised to Turkey to introduce visa-free regime for Turkish citizens and speed up Ankara's efforts to join the EU.
Bozkir noted that it is correct to speak of “thousands or maybe tens of thousands of refugees” to be returned to Turkey rather than of “hundreds of thousands or millions” if the plan is reenacted.
Turkey will start readmitting refugees from Greece only once those who are already on EU territory are resettled among member states.
He highlighted that the EU will not be able to pick highly qualified applicants, such as doctors and engineers, as the process will be overseen by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
Bozkir estimated that Turkey will fulfill its obligations under the deal by May 1, Hurriyet Daily informs.
According to the proposed deal, the EU will resettle one Syrian refugee from Turkish camps in exchange for every Syrian taken by Ankara from Greece.
This is expected to reduce the initiative of people to travel on boats to Europe.
The agreement with Turkey is expected to be finalised at the next meeting of the European Council on March 17-18.
A boycott of major retail chains in Croatia has led to an estimated loss of 80 million euros
Bosnian Serb leader Milorad Dodik has once again called for Republika Srpska to separate from Bosnia and Herzegovina
Macedonian Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski raised questions in parliament about the inclusion of Bulgarians in North Macedonia's constitution while there is no similar requirement for Albania
Konstantinos Tasoulas has been elected as the new president of Greece
Romania’s President Klaus Iohannis announced his resignation on Monday, February 10, stating that he was stepping down to prevent the political crisis that would follow his possible suspension by Parliament
Kosovo's Prime Minister Albin Kurti, leading the Self-Determination Movement (Vetevendosje), has secured a victory in the country's recent parliamentary election.
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