IKV hosted a report launch event entitled “A New Era in Turkey-EU Relations: The Syrian Crisis and the 18 March Deal” on 17 December 2021 at TOBB Plaza, İstanbul. IKV Chairman Ayhan Zeytinoğlu and Middle East Technical University Faculty Member and Foreign Policy Institute President Prof. Hüseyin Bağcı delivered the opening speeches of the event which was moderated by IKV Deputy Secretary General M. Gökhan Kilit and Çanakkale Onsekiz Mart University Faculty Member Asst. Prof. Nihal Eminoğlu.

In his opening speech, IKV Chairman Zeytinoğlu underscored the importance of migration cooperation and the 18 March Turkey-EU Statement for Turkey-EU relations and expressed his view that migration would continue to play a crucial role in the relations. For his part, Prof. Bağcı stressed that the 18 March Deal was a turning point in Turkey-EU relations and stated that Turkey with its economy, human capital and geographical location should not be ignored by the EU.

Following the opening speeches, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Director for EU Affairs Ambassador Faruk Kaymakcı delivered a keynote address. Emphasizing that the 18 March Turkey-EU Statement was not only a migration deal, Deputy Foreign Minister Ambassador Kaymakcı indicated that Turkey delivered its part of the deal while the EU failed to keep its promises on financial aid, Voluntary Humanitarian Admission Scheme and joint efforts in northern Syria. Ambassador Kaymakcı highlighted the importance of addressing 11 key issues including improving cooperation at the borders and with transit countries, stopping pushbacks by Greece and re-establishing mutual trust.

The event continued with the presentation of the report titled “A New Era in Turkey-EU Relations: The Syrian Crisis and the 18 March Deal” by Turkish-German University Faculty Member Prof. Murat Erdoğan. Sharing the findings of the report, Prof. Erdoğan stressed that concerning migration the EU established a relationship with Turkey which was fluctuating between externalisation and instrumentalisation.

Following the presentation of the report a panel discussion was held. Speaking at the panel session, Ambassador (R) Naci Koru voiced support for the view that 18 March Turkey-EU Statement was an important turning point and stated that Turkey lent a helping hand to the EU. For his part, Kadir Has University Faculty Member Prof. Mustafa Aydın stated that the EU has not taken any further steps regarding its relations with Turkey and expected the first step from Turkey, and added that the renewal of the 18 March Turkey-EU Statement could provide a sound basis for the positive agenda. Meanwhile, MEF University Faculty Member Prof. Beken Saatçioğlu indicated that the 18 March Turkey-EU Statement deepened the strategic partnership with the EU while the EU assessed its success centred on an externalisation policy. Finally, IKV Secretary General Assoc. Prof. Çiğdem Nas underscored that the 18 March Turkey-EU Statement strengthened the perception that the EU viewed Turkey as a neighbouring country and said that while there were some missed opportunities; Turkey acquired important gains through the EU process.