EU response to Erdogan, who said “It’s his business”

The European Union (EU) confirmed its commitment to maintaining a cooperative and mutually beneficial relationship with Turkey.

Ana Pisonero, one of the spokespersons for the EU Commission, responded to the question at the press conference about the statements made yesterday by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Turkey’s accession process. Stating that it is in the EU’s interest to establish a mutually beneficial relationship with Turkey and maintain a stable and secure environment in the Eastern Mediterranean, Pisonero said: “The EU is committed to a constructive relationship for common prosperity and stability on the basis of commitments to human rights, the rule of law, international law and regional stability”. “He is willing to establish relations with Turkey to move forward,” she said.

Pisonero recalled that work continues on the report prepared by the EU Commission on the course of EU-Turkey relations to advance strategically and with a vision for the future, and that the annual report for Turkey within the framework of the enlargement package will be published soon.

President Erdoğan, in his speech yesterday before the General Assembly of Parliament on the occasion of the opening of the 28th legislative period of the second legislative year of the Turkish Grand National Assembly, said: “(EU) If you intend to end your full membership process, which is now mere talk, that side of the matter is his business. “We will replace the Copenhagen Criteria with the Ankara Criteria if necessary in terms of democracy, justice and freedoms, and we will continue on our way,” he stated. (AA)