Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Foreign Minister of the Federal Republic of Germany paid a working visit to Turkey and met with Foreign Minister Sinirlioğlu on 18 September 2015.

During the tete-a-tete and inter-delegation meetings held in the context of the visit, regional and international issues of immediate concern for the two countries such as irregular migration, refugee crisis in Europe, bilateral relations and fight against terrorism were discussed.

Speaking at the joint press conference organized following the meetings, Foreign Minister Sinirlioğlu said that the refugee crisis could not be overcome by building fences and that Turkey would continue to fulfill its responsibilities on this matter. Foreign Minister Sinirlioğlu pointed out that Federal Republic of Germany held the most congruent views to that of Turkey on this issue. Stressing the need for coming up with and implementing the measures to alleviate the suffering of the people of Syria and provide their security during the crisis, albeit to a limited extent, Foreign Minister Sinirlioğlu added that Turkey maintained the idea of creating zones in certain areas where Syrian refugees would feel safe.

Speaking at the joint press conference, Foreign Minister Steinmeier said that the role played by Turkey concerning Syrian refugees deserved admiration and that he understood the difficulty of caring for more than two million refugees. Foreign Minister Steinmeier described Turkey as an influential regional power and added that he was sure Turkey would be successful in its efforts to resolve the issue.

Foreign Minister Steinmeier noted that the Federal Republic of Germany would raise the refugee issue at both the UNHCR (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees) and G-7, for which the RFG holds the current presidency and that the EU is in the process of taking a decision about the aid to be offered to countries sheltering the refugees.