IKV Chairman Ayhan Zeytinoğlu evaluated President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s messages to the ambassadors of EU countries. IKV Chairman Zeytinoğlu pointed out that President Erdoğan’s statements that EU membership continues to be a strategic priority for Turkey was important and made the following remarks:

“Our President’s statements to the EU ambassadors were very important. Despite the recent problems in the relations, our President gave a positive message by emphasizing Turkey’s commitment to the EU goal. Referring to the effects of COVID-19 and the structural problems in the international system, Mr. President drew attention to the need to strengthen the relationship between Turkey and the EU in this new period. In addition, it is extremely important that the commitment to the goal of full EU membership has been confirmed at the highest level at a time when some circles are looking for alternatives to EU membership. Especially, the statement 'Turkey, which is a part of the continent of Europe geographically, historically and socially, surely is committed to its goal of full EU membership' demonstrates that Turkey’s determination regarding the EU has continued since 1959, when the application for associate membership to the then European Economic Community was made.”

Steps towards the EU Should Be Accelerated

IKV Chairman Zeytinoğlu touched upon the EU-related work which was mentioned by President Erdoğan. Noting that Turkey has gained an advantageous position in terms of alignment to the European Green Deal by ratifying the Paris Climate Agreement, Zeytinoğlu emphasized that compliance with EU values and standards in the fields of democracy, rule of law and economy was extremely important for the EU membership goal. IKV Chairman Zeytinoğlu pointed out that fulfilling 66 of the 72 benchmarks for visa liberalisation was an important success and taking swift action to meet the remaining benchmarks would mean overcoming a psychological barrier. He drew attention to the need to continue the reforms in line with the membership goal, without giving credit to the unfair and prejudiced approaches of certain Member States and circles in the EU.Stating that it is also Turkey’s right to expect 'sincere, fair and committed' behaviour from the EU, IKV Chairman Zeytinoğlu stressed that the problems, security risks and conflict areas all over the world and especially in Europe’s immediate neighbourhood make cooperation between Turkey and the EU in foreign policy and security domains indispensable. IKV Chairman Zeytinoğlu concluded his remarks as follows:

“We are going through an era of rapid change. In addition to the efforts aimed at post-COVID-19 economic recovery, digitalisation and the green transition force all sectors and countries including structures such as the EU to transform. At the same time, the number of hotspots in the immediate vicinity is growing from Ukraine to Kazakhstan, from Libya to Bosnia. Security threats manifest themselves in different ways such as cyber security threats, disinformation and terrorism. Migratory movements, triggered by internal conflicts, poverty and the climate crisis, continue to increase. In such an environment, it is an inevitable necessity for the EU to work together with Turkey. The formula for this is the advancing Turkey’s integration process to the EU. The proposals such as privileged partnership, which have been raised from time to time, remained devoid of substance. The fact that the accession negotiations have come to a halt negatively affected the whole range of relations and caused a significant regression. Therefore, it is crucial that the goal of full membership is preserved and relations are advanced on the basis of common interests and shared values until this aim is achieved. President Erdoğan’s positive message is of great importance at a time when a new government has come to power in Germany and critical elections are approaching in France. We hope that the EU will respond positively to this and that the two sides will take steps towards each other.”