Expert Aykan Erdemir joins The Greek Current to discuss his latest reports about Turkish airlines’ alleged role in the Poland-Belarus crisis, the news that Turkey agreed to curb migrant flows to Belarus under EU pressure, and why this is significant.
Earlier this week it was reported that the EU was considering taking measures against Turkish Airlines over the latter's alleged role in trafficking migrants to Belarus. Turkish Airlines denied wrongdoing in a statement on Wednesday. On Thursday, however, Bloomberg reported that Turkey agreed with the EU that it would monitor flights headed to Belarus in an effort to prevent them from being used to ferry migrants toward the Polish border, and Turkish Airlines reportedly will no longer allow passengers from Iraq, Syria, and Yemen on its flights to Minsk. Expert Aykan Erdemir joins The Greek Current to discuss his latest policy briefing that looks into Turkish airlines’ alleged role in the Poland-Belarus crisis, and this latest development.
Dr. Aykan Erdemir is the senior director of the Turkey program at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and a former Turkish lawmaker.
Read Aykan Erdemir’s latest policy brief for the FDD: Turkish Airlines in EU Crosshairs for Facilitating Lukashenko’s “Hybrid Warfare” With Belarus Flights
You can read the articles we discuss on our podcast here:
Turkish Airlines risks EU ban over Poland border crisis
Turkish Airlines denies fueling Belarus-Poland migration crisis
Turkey Agrees to Curb Migrant Flows to Belarus Under EU Pressure
Turkey says it rejects efforts to portray it as part of Belarus migrant problem
Lukashenko threatens EU with gas cutoff as border tensions rise