Erdoğan receives EU's Kallas in Ankara

ANKARA

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has received European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas and an accompanying delegation at the presidential complex in Ankara.

Kallas, the EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and vice president of the European Commission, is visiting Türkiye together with Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos and Internal Affairs and Migration Commissioner Magnus Brunner.

No further details were immediately provided on the meeting.

The delegation is also due to meet Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan during their visit

The European External Action Service (EEAS) said the talks would provide an opportunity to review EU-Türkiye relations in the context of Türkiye’s status as both a candidate country and a NATO ally.

The sides are also expected to discuss shared challenges in an increasingly unstable geopolitical environment and explore new areas of cooperation, it said.

The visit comes in the final days of Greek Cyprus’ rotating presidency of the Council of the EU, which ends on June 30.

The joint visit by Kallas, Kos, and Brunner is seen in Ankara as a sign that Brussels wants to give new momentum to dialogue with Türkiye across several files.

Kos is also expected to hold talks with Treasury and Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek, Transport and Infrastructure Minister Abdulkadir Uraloğlu, and Trade Minister Ömer Bolat.

Ankara is expected to repeat its call for a fair and merit-based approach to Türkiye’s EU accession process after negotiations effectively stalled in 2018.

Visa issues are also expected to be high on the agenda. Türkiye wants wider facilitation measures for Turkish citizens until visa liberalization is achieved, while the EU is expected to emphasize work on the remaining criteria for visa-free travel.

Fidan is also expected to underline Ankara’s call for negotiations to begin on updating the customs union, a long-standing demand of Türkiye and the Turkish business community.

Migration is another key issue, with Ankara seeking cooperation based on fair responsibility and burden sharing under changing regional conditions.

Regional security issues directly affecting both Türkiye and the EU are also expected to be discussed, including efforts to support stability in nearby regions.

Connectivity, the EU’s “Made in EU” discussions, and the bloc’s defense-focused Security Action for Europe, or SAFE, instrument are also among topics likely to be raised.