Ahead of talks with Turkey’s leader, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Monday the EU wanted to “develop a workable agreement” with Ankara on refugees and migrants.

Speaking at a press conference in Brussels, von der Leyen also said she had told Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis that the EU “expects fundamental rights to be respected and implemented, including the right to asylum.”

EU leaders condemned Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s announcement that Ankara would no longer stop migrants crossing into the EU, which prompted thousands to make their way to the Greek-Turkish land border in recent days. Violent clashes erupted there last week. Turkey claims Greek border guards have killed at least one migrant and injured others, which Athens denies.

Brussels has called on Ankara to respect its 2016 deal with the EU, under which it agreed to keep migrants on its territory in return for billions of euros in aid, and officials have said they will not give in to blackmail.

But von der Leyen struck a more conciliatory tone on Monday ahead of talks in Brussels with Erdoğan and European Council President Charles Michel.

Click Here: pinko shop cheap

She said the evening meeting marked the beginning of a new dialogue to “develop a workable agreement with each other” and “figure out how we can move forward in a more positive way” than has been the case over the past week.

She did not respond directly to a question over how much more the EU might be willing to pay to Turkey to maintain the agreement.

As part of Greece’s response to the crisis, Mitsotakis said last week his country would stop accepting new asylum applications for a month. That move prompted criticism from rights activists, who said it contravened international law.

Von der Leyen stopped short of directly criticizing Greece but said that “in addition to all the aid that the European Union provides, we also expect fundamental rights to be respected and implemented, including the right to asylum.”

Asked about reports that Greek security forces used tear gas and smoke grenades over the weekend to repel migrants trying to bring down a border fence, von der Leyen said: “As a principle, all responses must be proportionate. Alleged violent incidents need to be investigated, and excessive use of force is unacceptable. This is a standing principle.”

Her remarks were different in tone to comments she made last week when visiting the Greek-Turkish border, where she praised Greece “for being our European aspida,” which translates as “shield.”

At the news conference in Brussels, held to mark the first 100 days of her Commission, she said the protection of border and fundamental rights “have to go hand in hand.”