'EU and Turkey must cooperate to prevent IS recruitments'

The European Union (EU) should work with international partners, especially Turkey, to prevent the Islamic State (IS) from recruiting European citizens as jihadis, a senior EU official said Monday.

"We discussed the issue aiming to have good coordination (on) a strategy to stop the flow (of foreign fighters) both ways," High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Federica Mogherini said at a joint press conference with Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, Xinhua reported.

The EU foreign policy chief Mogherini, Commissioner for European Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations Johannes Hahn and Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Management Christos Stylianides, paid a two-day visit to Turkey Monday.

There have been "positive developments" recently in intelligence-sharing and coordination with Turkey, Mogherini said, noting that the case did not involve "purely a security element".

In order to prevent foreign fighters joining the IS in Syria, Mogherini said that they should carry "cultural work together, particularly on Muslim communities" and give the right messages.

She also announced that the EU was finalising a package of 70 million euros ($86 million) for Turkey, for supporting the Syrian refugees taking shelter in the country.