Foreign Minister Fidan on EU Visa issue: “They make it difficult because we are Muslims”
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan made striking remarks regarding Europe’s ongoing visa restrictions, asserting that the core of the problem lies in the EU’s fear that young Turks will stay in Europe — and in an unspoken reluctance to accept Muslim migrants.
Fidan spoke during the parliamentary session on the 2026 budget of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, responding to questions from MPs about the deepening visa crisis.
Record-High Visa Rejections
As international travel demand rises, Turkish citizens’ visa applications have surged to record levels in 2025. However, rejection rates have also climbed to an all-time high, intensifying public frustration over the issue.
“The Problem Is One Door — the EU”
Addressing criticisms that “Türkiye’s passport has lost value,” Fidan emphasized that the issue stems from the EU’s centralized visa system, not from individual countries:
“There is only one door regarding visas — the EU door. Those 27 countries act as one. They use a joint database, joint criteria, joint checks. This is why it feels like every country is closing its doors. In reality, it is one structure applying restrictions.”
“Europe Fears That Our Youth Will Stay”
Fidan argued that two main concerns drive the EU’s restrictive stance:
- Fear that Turkish youth may remain in Europe
- Political anxiety over immigration, particularly Muslim migration
“They believe that if your young people go, they will stay there. Immigration has dramatically altered Europe’s political landscape. Governments change because of it. They link the rise of the far right to migrant flows — especially from Muslim-majority countries.”
“They Can’t Say ‘We Don’t Want Muslims,’ So They Use Covert Measures”
Fidan said Europe’s identity politics prevent them from openly expressing anti-Muslim sentiment:
“Europeans cannot openly say, ‘We don’t want Muslims.’
They cannot name specific countries.
So they introduce covert, undefined restrictions. This is identity politics at work.”
He stressed that despite strong economic, social, and cultural ties — including €230 billion in trade, extensive student mobility, business travel, and a large Turkish diaspora — the EU has stalled progress toward visa liberalization.
EU Membership: “An Intent Frozen Since 2007”
On Türkiye’s EU accession process, Fidan stated that the blockage was political, not technical:
“The EU froze its willingness in 2007.
France and Germany showed a clear will not to admit a Muslim country.
This is not an issue that ended because of us.
When the EU wants to advance accession, there is no process it cannot move forward.”
“Visa Liberalization Is the Only Logical Step”
Fidan concluded that, under the current level of interdependence, lifting visa requirements is the rational next stage for EU–Türkiye relations:
“With such intense trade and social mobility, the only thing that can sustain this is visa liberalization. Europe knows this, but identity politics have suspended progress.”
The comments highlight the deepening divide between Ankara and Brussels over migration, identity, and integration — issues at the heart of European politics today.
