Brussels: Europe and the Arabs

Today, Wednesday, the visit of the European Commission member in charge of the neighborhood and enlargement file, Oliver Varheli, to Ankara began to discuss bilateral relations and cooperation with Turkey. This is the first official visit by a representative of the European Union to the country after the presidential elections in May this year.
According to a statement issued by the Commission's headquarters in Brussels, the Commissioner will meet with Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan. Trade Minister Omer Polat; Minister of Family and Social Services Mahinur Ozdemir Goktas; Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Alp Arslan Bayraktar, and Minister of Industry and Technology Muhammad Fatih Kassir.
The visit follows the conclusions of the Council of the European bloc last June, in which leaders of member states called on the European High Coordinator for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, and the European Commission to report to the European Council on the current situation. and relations between the European Union and Turkey, based on the tools and options identified by the European Council, with the aim of moving forward in a strategic and forward-looking manner. The visit also comes ahead of the publication of the next expansion report expected in October.
Ahead of the visit, the European Commission on September 1 signed an Association Agreement with Turkey opening access to the €7.5 billion Digital Europe programme, which, once it enters into force, will enable eligible companies, public administrations and other organizations in the country to access Turkey. Participate in projects that spread digital technologies. Under this agreement, digital innovation centers will also be established in Türkiye.
The European Commission has also proposed €400 million financial support from the European Union Solidarity Fund (EUSF) to provide assistance to Turkey following the damage caused by the devastating earthquakes of February 2023.
During the visit, Commissioner Varhelyi will sign a €781 million contract to provide EU funds for a social safety net for the most vulnerable refugees as part of the €3 billion additional funding the EU has pledged to continue supporting refugees in the country.