LET NOT ONLY 2021, BUT EVERY YEAR BE THE YEAR OF THE EU
On 21 January 2021, IKV Chairman Ayhan Zeytinoğlu commented on the latest developments regarding the EU process on the occasion of Foreign Minister and Chief Negotiator Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu’s visit to Brussels. Pointing out to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s meetings with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and ambassadors of EU countries, IKV Chairman Zeytinoğlu said that the efforts to accelerate and put Turkey-EU relations back on track should be appreciated. IKV Chairman Zeytinoğlu said that Turkey-EU relations, which have recently gone through a difficult period, were extremely important not only in strategic terms, but also in economic and trade terms. Indicating that relations should be put on a positive trajectory on the basis of mutual benefits, IKV Chairman Zeytinoğlu stressed that full membership to the EU should continue to be the ultimate goal.
Commenting on the developments in Germany, the leading country in the EU, IKV Chairman Zeytinoğlu assessed the election of Armin Laschet as the new leader of German Chancellor Merkel’s CDU party, who would continue Merkel's moderate line, as a positive development. Chairman Zeytinoğlu welcomed the visit by German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas on 18 January as a positive start for the development of mutual dialogue and made the following remarks:
“2021 started on a hopeful note for relations with the EU. President Erdoğan's meetings and statements that the EU remains a strategic objective, indicate that the EU is at the forefront as a priority again. Steps to reduce tension in the Eastern Mediterranean and the visit by German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas point out that diplomacy will be much more determining in relations with the EU this year. I say that let not only 2021, but every year following it be the year of the EU. Recently, we have experienced significant loss of ground in the EU process. It is necessary to reclaim the lost ground and overcome the impasse in the relations starting with the modernisation of the Customs Union, visa liberalisation and cooperation on refugees. Obviously, these should not be considered as processes to replace full membership, but rather as steps to facilitate the process leading to it. Turkey’s EU orientation should be sustained through acceleration of reform steps in economic governance and political reforms in the areas of judiciary and democratisation. We have done this in the early 2000s. We can do it again. Particularly, the efforts to fulfil the remaining 6 out of the 72 benchmarks in the visa liberalisation process should be accelerated. Concrete reform steps will also affect EU’s approach to Turkey positively. Armin Laschet, who has been elected as the new President of Chancellor Merkel's CDU party in Germany, is a politician who will continue Merkel’s line and prevent the party from moving further to the right. Laschet is known for his affinity to refugees and moderate stance, which is an opportunity for Turkey. Germany is Turkey’s most important partner in the EU. In this respect, by keeping relations with Germany close and taking into consideration that this will also have positive reflections on the EU process, we hope that 2021 and every year after that will be the year of the EU.”