Filenews 4 May 2022
At a time when opinion polls are "blackening" against Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, he is announcing a programme of mass withdrawal of Syrian refugees from the country.
The Turkish president said yesterday that preparations are being made to enable 1 million refugees to return home voluntarily.
The main locations being considered for the return of Syrian refugees are border areas in northern Syria, which Ankara has occupied.
About 500,000 Syrians have already returned home, the Turkish president stressed.
"In the security areas that Turkey has created since 2016, about 500,000 Syrian citizens have returned. We support the plans for the return of refugees with a voluntary character, aiming at containing the refugee wave at the border", "we are now preparing for a new plan for the voluntary return of one million Syrian refugees", he said.
The plan essentially marks a "shift" in Erdogan's stance so far, saying that refugees are part of Turkey and will stay here.
SKAI's Correspondent in Turkey, Manolis Kostidis, explained that the change in Erdogan's attitude towards Syrian refugees may be related to the very unfavourable opinion polls showing that he is losing in a duel in the second round of elections, whoever his opponent is. At a time when the economic crisis in Turkey is hitting Turkish incomes, the perception that "the refugees are to blame" is deepening in society and Erdogan is trying to reverse the negative climate.
Metropol's poll's metrics of percentages of Erdogan and his potential rivals in the event of a second round are as follows:
- Masur Yavas (mayor of Ankara) 53.9% - Recep Tayyip Erdogan 36.5%
- Imamoglu (mayor of Istanbul) 49.7% - Recep Tayyip Erdogan 40.9%
- Kilinsdaroglu 43.3% - Recep Tayyip Erdogan 42.5%
- Aksener 43.8% - Recep Tayyip Erdogan 41.9%
