Turkey to add a border wall to restrain Afghan refugees from entering: Interior Minister

Turkey has already been facing anti-migrant sentiment due to Syrian migrants. Tts Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu on Wednesday denied accepting the influx of refugees coming from Afghanistan. According to a report by the news agency, Xinhua, Turkey has been extending the construction of a wall on its eastern Van province border with Iran in order to secure the country from the migrant influx. The media report said that the country has already built 221 kilometres border wall near the Iran borders and it was planning to add another 242 kilometres. The news agency claimed that the decision was taken during a meeting on the issue of migration on September 15. 

"Our agreements with Iran has resulted favourably. We are purposing to finish the 20 kilometres on our (southeastern province) Hakkari border by this Christmastime," Xinhua news agency quoted him as saying.

Turkey has already erected border wall to avoid Afghan refugees

Further, the minister said that the country has taken measures on its eastern border before the Taliban took over Afghanistan. "Soon after the Taliban captured the national capital of Afghanistan, at least 1,500 cross Turkey border every day. Now, it has reduced to 200," added the Turkish Interior Minister. It is worth mentioning tihis was not the first time when Turkey addressed the issue of the migrant crisis. 

Earlier on Tuesday, the Turkish president told German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier in a telephone call that his country does not have the capacity to deal with a possible new refugee wave from Afghanistan. “President Erdogan underlined that Turkey does not have the capacity to handle a new migration burden,” said a statement from the presidential communications office. Erdogan added that “no one wants to relive an experience similar to the Syrian refugee wave of 2015,” when hundreds of thousands of people reached Greek islands by boats from the nearby Turkish coast, on their way to seek asylum in more prosperous EU countries. 

Similarly, on August 20, he called other European countries to take responsibility for Afghans fleeing the Taliban and said Ankara is not obligated to be a “Europe refugee warehouse”. Notably, Turkey, which already hosts the world’s largest refugee population, including 3.7 million Syrians, is concerned about a potential influx of refugees fleeing the Taliban. Anti-migrant sentiment has been running high in the country as it grapples with economic woes, including high unemployment, that has been exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic.

(With inputs from AP)

(Image: Twitter/ Suleyman Soylu)