24 April 2016•Update: 27 April 2016
GAZIANTEP, Turkey
German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Saturday that Turkey’s issuing work permits to Syrian refugees was a “very brave step”.
The German chancellor was speaking at a joint press conference of Turkey-EU Aid Program for Syrian Refugees in the southeastern province of Gaziantep.
Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, European Council President Donald Tusk and First Vice-President of EU Commission Frans Timmermans were also present at the event.
Merkel described Turkey’s issuing work permits for Syrian refugees as a “very brave step”.
“We saw that Syrians were embraced [here] as a society,” she added. Turkey is the country that accepted the highest number of refugees. EU needs to take responsibility as well.”
Merkel also said that seeing what has been done and accomplished regarding the refugees was important for her.
She added that 120,000 refugee children are living in Gaziantep and that all are expected to go to school thanks to the EU funds.
“This is a very important work. There are parents and handicapped children experiencing trauma. I believe good projects can be implemented regarding this,” she said.
On Wednesday, Merkel said that her visit to Turkey was aimed at gaining new insights into the living conditions of Syrian refugees and identifying their needs.
The EU and Turkey agreed on an action plan late last year, to improve conditions of Syrian refugees in Turkey and to strengthen the fight against human smugglers operating in the Aegean Sea.
Turkey hosts the largest number of Syrian refugees in the world, with over 2.5 million Syrians inside the country.
