The German government is willing to support an EU proposal to put Turkey on a list of "safe countries" whose citizens have little chance of being granted asylum in Europe, a senior official in Berlin told Reuters on Wednesday, October 14.

"I could imagine that in a broader context it would make sense to put Turkey on the list of safe countries," a senior German government official told Reuters on condition of anonymity, apparently signaling a reversal of opinion in Berlin.

Germany has previously been skeptical of the proposal, mainly because of Ankara's human rights record and its treatment of the Kurdish minority.

In past decades, many Turkish Kurds have been granted asylum in Germany and elsewhere in the EU. Ankara has asked to be put on the "safe country" list.

Germany does not expect a decision on the matter at the EU summit in Brussels, the official added. He said the issue might be raised during Merkel's talks with Erdogan and Davutoglu.

As a bitterly-divided EU struggles to cope with hundreds of thousands of people fleeing war and poverty in the Middle East, Asia and Africa, securing cooperation of non-member Turkey is seen as increasingly central to managing the problem.