TRUST AND TRAVEL. How EU member states can ease the visa burden for Turks
TRUST AND TRAVEL. How EU member states can ease the visa burden for Turks

Author(s): Author Not Specified
Subject(s): International relations/trade
Published by: ESI – European Stability Initiative
Keywords: Schengen; visa-free Trukish travel;
Summary/Abstract: Up until the 1980s Turkish citizens could travel without a visa to all Western European countries except Greece. Following the 1980 military coup, these countries introduced a visa requirement for Turkish citizens. In the 1990s, with the establishment of the Schengen zone, the visa requirement became common EU policy. || In December 2013 the European Commission handed over a roadmap towards visa-free travel. Now Turkey has to meet a series of requirements that the roadmap sets out. If it does, the EU has promised to abolish the Schengen short-stay visa requirement for Turkish citizens. || Turkey now has to meet the requirements that the roadmap sets out. They concern passport security, border management, asylum policy and respect for human rights, the fight against illegal migration and various forms of organised crime, as well as cooperation with the EU. However, there are widespread concerns in Turkey that EU member states might still vote against lifting the visa requirement even if Turkey meets all roadmap conditions.

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