Envoy accuses EU of linking ‘every issue related to Türkiye to Cyprus’
TÜRKIYE’S envoy to the EU on Monday stressed that the bloc should treat Türkiye on par with other membership candidate countries.
At a meeting of the European Committee of the Regions Working Group on Türkiye, Ambassador Faruk Kaymakçı emphasised the importance of Türkiye as an EU candidate and urged equal treatment, expressing disappointment with the final declaration of a recent EU summit.
Saying that the EU “ties every issue related to Türkiye to Cyprus,” Kaymakçı added: “We cannot reach any solution with unilateral policies.”
He underlined that elements such as the initiation of high-level dialogue, reactivation of the European Investment Bank in Türkiye, visa facilitation, and modernisation of the Customs Union should be ensured as soon as possible.
Nacho Sanchez Amor, the European Parliament Türkiye rapporteur, stressed that it should not be forgotten that Türkiye is a candidate country.
Sanchez Amor argued that there is a lack of political will in Türkiye for EU membership and the country is moving away from the EU’s security and foreign policy.
He said the EU is watching Türkiye with caution as to what the government will do about the membership process following the March 31 local elections.
Calling the decisions on Türkiye at the recent EU summit disappointing, Sanchez Amor said that a report prepared last November by EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell mentioned many ways to work with Türkiye, but EU leaders did not take them into consideration.