Defence, migration on talks table as German and Turkish leaders meet

Defence cooperation and migration will top the agenda when German Chancellor Olaf Scholz holds talks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Istanbul on Saturday, the high-profile visit coming amid escalating tensions in the Middle East.

“We will be discussing many issues. The issue of migration is, of course, always one of them,” Scholz said ahead of the trip, his second to Türkiye since his March 2022 trip.

The proposed sale of Eurofighter jets to Türkiye will also feature in the bilateral discussions, he said.

“Of course, we always discuss the supply of weapons to our NATO partner,” he said, adding that the UK is currently holding talks with the Turkish government on the potential sale of Eurofighters.

“This is at a very early stage, and that is why we said, ‘let’s negotiate,’” he said.

Eurofighter Typhoon jets are jointly produced by the UK, Germany, Italy and Spain.

Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza has weighed heavily on ties between Türkiye and Germany, which is one of the biggest arms suppliers to Tel Aviv and has defended its right to self-defence.

Erdogan has long been a fierce critic of Israel's brutal war and its recent invasion of Lebanon, even comparing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Nazi Germany's Adolf Hitler.

Though the Chancellor’s visit was finalised before Israel killed Hamas politburo leader Yahya Sinwar, Tel Aviv’s growing belligerence across occupied Palestinian lands and Lebanon is likely to come up during the discussions.

Migration issue

Scholz said his visit to Istanbul will be an opportunity to discuss bilateral issues and EU-Türkiye cooperation, especially on the tricky subject of migration.

“I have always supported this and repeatedly asked the European Union to extend the relevant agreements,” he said, referring to the 2016 EU-Türkiye migration agreement, which effectively stopped irregular refugee flows into Europe through the Aegean Sea.

Ankara, however, has repeatedly criticised its European partners for not honouring their commitments.​​​​​​​

As part of the deal, the EU had promised to accelerate Türkiye’s EU accession process, start negotiations on modernising the Customs Union trade agreement and provide visa-free travel for Turkish nationals within the Schengen area.

Germany is home to Europe's largest Turkish diaspora of around three million people.