ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Germany is ready to help drive forward Turkey's European Union accession process, Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Sunday, extending support to Ankara in exchange for Turkish help in stemming the flow of refugees to Europe.

"How can we organize the accession process more dynamically?" Merkel asked at a joint news conference with Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu.

"Germany is ready this year to open Chapter 17, and the make preparations for (chapters) 23 and 24. We can talk about the details," she said.

(Writing by Paul Carrel; Editing by Mark Potter)