Turkish opposition figures criticized President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Tuesday after Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni thanked him for reducing migration from Turkey to “zero” during a press conference following their summit in Rome, Turkish media outlets reported on Wednesday.
Meloni’s remarks came after she and Erdoğan oversaw the signing of a dozen cooperation agreements in the Italian capital on Tuesday, including deals on defense and trade. Italy has sought to deepen ties with Turkey as a regional partner in security and migration control, with Meloni calling the migration drop a success of joint efforts.
Italian PM Giorgia Meloni thanks Erdoğan for reducing irregular migrant departures from #Turkey to “zero,” calling migration cooperation a success. pic.twitter.com/6Kmucr7anE
— Turkish Minute (@TurkishMinuteTM) April 30, 2025
The comment, however, drew backlash from Turkish opposition politicians who said Meloni’s words pointed to a growing imbalance in Turkey’s foreign policy role and painted the country as Europe’s de facto refugee buffer zone.
İlhan Uzgel, foreign policy coordinator for the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), called Meloni’s statement “a national humiliation,” adding in a social media post: “Let’s say it plainly: ‘Thanks for turning your country into a refugee depot to relieve us of the burden.’ Turkey doesn’t deserve to be treated this way.”
IYI (Good) Party lawmaker Turhan Çömez likened Meloni’s comment to past remarks by former Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım, who once said Turkey protected Europe from mass migration. “It’s the same message: ‘Turkey guards Europe’s borders, and we’re grateful,’” Çömez wrote.
At the summit Erdoğan said Turkey would continue cooperating with Italy to fight irregular migration and acknowledged that difficulties in obtaining EU visas had become a barrier to economic relations. Meloni and Erdoğan also discussed Syria, where both countries have been involved in stabilization efforts.
The migration issue remains politically charged in Turkey, where the presence of millions of refugees, particularly Syrians, has fueled public resentment and become a focal point in election campaigns. Although Erdoğan has framed Turkey’s policies as humanitarian and strategic, critics accuse his government of sacrificing national dignity in exchange for financial deals with Europe.
The European Union has provided billions of euros in aid to Ankara since 2016 in return for preventing migrants from crossing into the bloc.
Turkey currently hosts an estimated 2.8 million Syrian refugees according to official data, with thousands more from Afghanistan and other conflict zones.