Nicosia-Sana
The Austrian Minister of European Union Affairs, Caroline Adstadler, called for cutting aid to the Turkish regime because of its exploitation of immigrants and their use as a pressure card on the Union.
The Turkish newspaper, Zaman, quoted Adstadler as saying today that no one can blackmail the European Union, as Turkey deliberately sends migrants to Greek Cyprus and has exploited individuals to obtain political gains from the European Union.
Adstadler indicated that Austria is the EU member state that has received the most immigrants in comparison to its population, and that 80 percent of these immigrants crossed through Turkey or Turkish Cyprus, stressing that "we, as the European Union, must react to this and send a clear and explicit message to Ankara."
It is noteworthy that the attempts of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to exploit the migrant file and blackmail Europe to achieve new political and financial gains began to anger the old continent at the political and media levels, while increasing voices condemning his use of the immigration card to pressure European leaders, considering his plans in this context just failed blackmail.
