EU Membership ‘No Longer a Priority’ for Turkey
Erdoğan said Turkey still has not closed the door to membership as EU accession talks remain stalled over rule-of-law concerns.
- In an interview airing Sunday, August 16, Turkish President Erdogan stated that European Union accession is no longer a priority for Ankara, though Turkey has not closed its doors to eventual membership.
- Ankara first sought closer ties through the 1963 Ankara Agreement, later applying for full membership on April 14, 1987; negotiations formally opened in 2005 but have remained effectively frozen for years amid European concerns.
- European Commission reports frequently criticize Turkey's judicial independence and restrictions on freedom of expression, while Turkish firms remain excluded from the European Union's €150 billion Security Action for Europe loan instrument.
- The Turkish President addressed the Mecca defence agreement signed August 7 with Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, noting the pact functions similarly to NATO's Article 5 collective defence clause.
- On military cooperation with the United States, the Turkish President said he expects President Donald Trump to fulfill a promise regarding Turkey's return to the F-35 fighter jet programme, from which it was removed in 2019.
39 Articles
39 Articles
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's statement to Al Jazeera that "the European Union is not our priority" has caused a stir. Former Permanent Representative to the European Union, Selim Kuneralp, said, "I think this is the first time such a statement has been made. I think it's good that he openly stated something everyone already knows." Namık Tan, a New Party Istanbul MP, questioned the reason for this shift in rhetoric and emphasized trade relat…
Recep Taiyp Erdogan, President-in-Office of Turkey for 12 years, said that he no longer wants his country to make considerable efforts to join the European Union. This motivates the gesture for cp for 53 years, "Europe refuses us.
The Turkish president has now chosen to prioritize differently in relation to Europe.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdgan said Sunday that Turkey's integration into the EU is no longer a priority, although the country does not close the door to EU bloc membership, DPA informs.
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