Turning point in June

08/05/2009 08:20:00 aslan

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Turning point in June

Turning point in June

The winning of a case opened by Turkish truck drivers regarding visa requirements for entry into Germany has initiated negotiations between Ankara and the European Commission…

A decision made by the European Court of Justice two months ago, allowing Turkish truck drivers to enter into Germany without visas has opened the way for further negotiations on visa bargaining with the EU for Turkish citizens. According to information received from EU sources, the European Commission is currently engaged in deliberations with Ankara on the issue of visas for Turkish citizens. Ankara’s position is that according to the court decision, especially individuals traveling for business purposes, but also tourists, and students also retain the right of being exempt from having to acquire a visa. The Commission plans to release their decision after consulting with member nations. The ‘best case’ scenario, according to EU observers would be for EU visa requirements to be lifted for Turkish citizens. However, the ‘worst case’ scenario is anticipated to be that visas will be facilitated for Turkish travelers entering into EU nations for business or commercial reasons. Yesterday, the Green Group of the European Parliament organized a meeting on EU visas for Turkish citizens. The Green Group supports the exemption of visas for Turkish citizens, not only from a judicial standpoint but also as Turkey is a nation that is currently engaged in deliberations to join the EU. A number of the EU’s significant judicial members joined the meeting yesterday in support of the total removal of visa requirements for Turkish citizens. However, the fact that Olli Rehn and Commission judicial member Jacques Barrot did not join the meeting, despite having received invitations, is being perceived as a signal that the Commission may choose to remain silent on the issue for a little longer.

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