Gaziantep, Turkey: Germany is seeking the creation of "safe zones" to shelter refugees in Syria, Chancellor Angela Merkel says, an idea Turkey has long championed in the face of UN caution.

Keeping refugees on the Syrian side of the border would help Brussels and Ankara, which hosts 2.7 million Syrian refugees, stem the flow of migrants to European shores.

The UN has warned against the plan unless there was a way to guarantee the refugees' safety in the war-torn state. Aid workers have opposed it.