Aleppo: EU and Turkey come up with a 10-point action plan

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What is happening?

LIVE— Merkel: Turkey,Germany on the same page regarding humanitarian assistance for refugeeshttps://t.co/cWBXrvq7A9 pic.twitter.com/tfdWhFK0O0
— DAILY SABAH (@DailySabah) February 8, 2016

Angela Merkel and Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu say they have put together an action plan to deal with the migrant crisis.

Germany’s Chancellor is in Turkey for talks on managing the ongoing refugee crisis.

Last week’s offensive in Aleppo, Syria’s second city, has given fresh impetus to calls for solutions to the crisis to be found.

http://www.euronews.com/2016/02/08/aleppo-merkel-meets-turkish-leaders-as-numbers-surge-on-syrian-border/

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1. EU piles pressure on Turkey to open border to Syrian refugees

The European Commission is reiterating its call for Turkey to open the border near the southern town of Kilis, where more than 35,000 Syrians are waiting.

Many of the people have fled an escalating government assault on Aleppo.

Rebel-held areas in and around the city are still home to 350,000 people and aid workers have said they could soon fall to the government.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which monitors the war, said air strikes, thought to be from Russian planes, hit villages north of Aleppo on Sunday.

http://www.euronews.com/2016/02/08/eu-piles-pressure-on-turkey-to-open-border-to-syrian-refugees/

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2. Putin: Turkey should make first move for normalization of ties

Speaking on the phone to Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev, who appeared willing to mediate in the dispute between Turkey and Russia, Putin reiterated that Turkey should make the first move to mend ties. He also claimed that Turkey was exacerbating the situation. In addition, the leaders discussed bilateral relations between Russia and Kazakhstan and the upcoming Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit.

On a previous occasion, Nazarbayev called on both countries to solve the jet crisis through diplomatic channels and even offered his help. Other countries such as Serbia have also said Ankara sought its help to broker a reconciliation with Moscow.

Previously, a senior Russian diplomat reiterated Russia's desire for Turkey to take steps to normalize relations, saying that Ankara knows what needs to be done for a normalization of ties.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexei Meshkov told the RIA Novosti news agency on Sunday that the Russian position has not changed and that what Moscow said weeks ago is still valid today. Turkey should compensate Russia for the downing of the Su-24 jet in November 2015, apologize for the incident and give a strong guarantee that the incident will not be repeated, according to Meshkov. Ankara refuses to apologize, saying that the Russian jet violated Turkish airspace despite numerous warnings and that Turkey has the right to protect its sovereignty.

http://www.todayszaman.com/diplomacy_putin-turkey-should-make-first-move-for-normalization-of-ties_411740.html

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3. Turkey's Erdogan Says Putin Is 'Occupier' in Syria

Turkish President Recep Erdogan has described Russian President Vladimir Putin as an "occupier" in Syria, the Bloomberg news agency reported Monday.

"What are you [Putin] doing in Syria? You're essentially an occupier," Erdogan said in comments published by the Turkish Hurriyet newspaper, Bloomberg reported.

Erdogan's comments came after the recent suspension of a UN-hosted peace conference on Syria in Geneva. The conference was adjourned due to the recent offensive of Syrian government forces against rebels near Aleppo.

Last week Erdogan proposed a meeting with Putin to discuss the latest developments in the relationship between the two countries, but Putin turned down the offer.

http://www.themoscowtimes.com/news/article/turkeys-erdogan-says-putin-is-occupier-in-syria/559023.html