Guy Verhofstadt, on behalf of the ALDE Group. – Mr President, there is a saying that when you play with fire, you have to expect to get burnt. I have to tell you that my impression is that this is exactly what is happening now with the Turkey deal.

Why with the Turkey deal? Because we tried to outsource our problems to an autocratic leader, Mr Erdoǧan. What is he doing? Well, two days ago, Mr Erdoǧan instructed the German Government to prosecute a TV presenter, Jan Böhmermann, for a satirical poem. I can tell you that I am not Mr Böhmermann’s lawyer and what he produced is also not my taste in humour, but in a free society such satirical poems must be possible. That is the price we pay for our freedom, and we pay happily for our freedom.

So, to come back to Erdoǧan: we have already given him the keys to the gates of Europe and now we risk handing over the keys to our newsrooms to him so that he decides and controls our media. I have to tell you that I am not surprised that this is happening. If you put yourself at the mercy of somebody like Mr Erdoǧan and if you outsource your responsibilities to a third country like Turkey, that in my opinion it is only the beginning of what I call Turkish bazaar politics. Why do I say that? Well, Mr Erdoǧan has already declared in the Turkish Parliament that he will call off the agreement he has made with you if, within two months, he does not have the visa liberalisation he requested, regardless of whether he keeps his part of the agreement and complies with our conditions for visa liberalisation.

So it is clear that we have put ourselves in the hands of Erdoǧan and, in fact, of his government. I have more and more the impression and the feeling, Mr Tusk, that, while Putin uses energy as a weapon, Erdoǧan uses poor refugees as a political weapon. That is what is happening.

And I do not say that in a light way, I have to tell you. First proof of that: in Turkey – that was part of the deal, Mr Juncker, and it is not being complied with by the Turks – they need to change their legislation to lift all the territorial restrictions on the Geneva Convention and to make it possible for a Syrian refugee to have asylum in Turkey. They are not doing it and they refuse to do it. Moreover, and more important, is the fact that there are reports – and nobody is talking about this, we have a debate here – from Amnesty International stating that Turkey is sending Syrian refugees back to Syria against international law. Yesterday this was confirmed by Dutch state television in a programme in which they investigated this and proved that the Turkish authorities are doing that.

My question to you, Mr Tusk, is: why are you not examining this? Is this true? And if this is true, can we continue with a deal that is against international law and against our obligations? What are you doing? What is your answer to that? Are you investigating this? Is it true what Amnesty International and Dutch state television said yesterday?

Thirdly, let us not fool ourselves. It is true: you say the deal is working. On the Greek—Turkish border, yes. There are no longer 1 700 a day but 50 a day now. But yesterday the Italian coastguard rescued not 50 people, as normal, but 2 154 people. So what is the result of yesterday? We can only take yesterday’s figures. People like to talk about figures here and about the deal. Well, they are the figures – from 1 700 to 50, and from 50 to 2 154. Is that a deal that is working?

In the meantime, we have in fact put our position, our freedom and our values in the hands of whom? Of Erdoǧan. Well, I am saying that instead of having a debate here about a deal that in my opinion is not working, we ourselves have to get our act together in Europe. That is the priority now and, in my opinion, that means three things.

First of all, the European Border and Coast Guard. Do you know what the reality is? The Commission, rightly, has asked the Member States for a number of people. Do you know the figures? Four hundred people were asked for as interpreters: 37 were sent to Greece. The Commission asked for 472 migration officers: 31, Mr Tusk, have been sent to Turkey and to Greece. The Commission asked for 1 500 security officers. How many have been sent? Three hundred and thirty-nine.

So in total, more than 2 300 people have been requested by the Commission as the start of this European Border and Coast Guard, and 400 of these people, more or less, have, in reality, been put at the disposal of the Commission. Is that a deal that is working? I have another idea. I think we desperately need this European Border and Coast Guard and to make an agreement so that it can be rolled out.

Secondly, I think we desperately need a European asylum system and, like Mr Pittella, I give the support of my Group to go forward with the Commission’s proposal as fast as possible.

And desperately, if you want to fight the smugglers, there is only one way and that is to make legal migration to Europe possible too. That is the only way to stop the smugglers – smugglers in Turkey or smugglers in North Africa.

(Applause)

(The speaker agreed to take a blue-card question under Rule 162(8))