Erdogan: Europe ‘will feel’ the new refugee wave

Presently, Turkey hosts almost 3.7 million Syrian refugees– the largest refugee population in the world. While speaking at an awards event in Istanbul on Sunday night, Erdogan stated: “If the violence towards the people of Idlib does not stop, this number will increase even more. Süleyman Soylu was quoted as saying, “We are dealing with the most significant wave of migration in history.

The country worries that a new wave of refugees from the Idlib province – a region that’s home to 3 million Syrians – could prove to be too much for Turkey to handle alone.

“The negative impact of the pressure we will be subjected to will be something that all European nations, especially Greece, will also feel,” Erdogan said, adding that another migrant crisis like the one seen in 2015 would become inevitable.

“We call on European countries to use their energy to stop the massacre in Idlib, rather than trying to corner Turkey for the legitimate steps it took in Syria,” Erdogan said.

Last fall, Erdogan and top Turkish officials threatened to “open the gates” and let 3.6 million migrants flood into Europe unless European countries provided more support to Turkey.