02 November 2015•Update: 02 November 2015
BRUSSELS
With Turkey’s Justice and Development (AK) Party having won back its majority in Sunday’s snap elections, the EU is seeking closer ties with the country to help solve the refugee crisis facing the 28-nation bloc.
"The EU will work together with the future government in order to further enhance the EU-Turkey partnership and to continue to advance our cooperation across all areas for the benefit of all citizens," EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini and European Commissioner for enlargement Johannes Hahn said in a statement Monday.
"Sunday's general elections in Turkey, which had a high voter turnout, have reaffirmed the strong commitment of the Turkish people to democratic processes," the statement added.
Faced with the worst migrant crisis since World War II, the EU is in the process of negotiating with Turkey on a refugee action plan, under which the 28-nation-bloc has offered Turkey funding to reduce the flow of asylum seekers coming into Europe in exchange for easier visa travel rules for Turkish citizens seeking to visit Europe.
Now that the Justice and Development (AK) Party secured 49.48 percent votes, a higher proportion than any of the predictions by opinion polls, analysts say Turkey, as an EU candidate country, should also re-ignite the accession process and work closer with the bloc on regional issues.
"With a majority in parliament the AK Party must approach shared European concerns and act in cooperation with its partners in the EU on questions like increased economic collaboration, refugee assistance and security throughout our shared neighborhood," Samuel Doveri Vesterbye, director of communications for the NGO, the Young Friends of Turkey, told Anadolu Agency.
"We encourage that the EU and member states help alleviate some of the pressure that has been put on Turkey since 2011 due to the large influx of Syrian refugees," Doveri Vesterbye said.
EU border agency Frontex said earlier this month that 710,000 migrants had entered the European Union in the first nine months of the year, with many traveling through Turkey, which is currently hosting more than 2 million Syrian refugees.
'Functioning government'
In the June elections, the AK Party lost its majority for the first time since 2002, but regained it in Sunday’s snap election after coalition talks with opposition parties failed.
"The election results show that our nation has sided with looking after the environment of stability and trust that was risked on June 7," Turkey’s president Recep Tayyip Erdogan said in a statement Monday.
After the June poll, Turkey saw a collapse in the "solution process", an early 2013 government initiative that was aimed at ending the decades-long armed campaign of the terrorist PKK group, as well as an increase in PKK's terror attacks mainly in Turkey's southeast.
