IKV Chairperson Ayhan Zeytinoğlu commented on the European Commission’s 2025 Türkiye Report following its announcement by the Commissioner responsible for Enlargement Marta Kos. Chairperson Zeytinoğlu said:

"As IKV, we have been monitoring Türkiye’s relations with the EU and the EU agenda for 60 years, producing information, analysis and opinions. The IKV is a civil society organisation established to ensure that Türkiye takes its rightful place in the EU process and progresses towards the ultimate goal of membership. Even when our relations were at their worst, the IKV was always there, ensuring that the process did not break down and continued to move forward. At the point we have reached today, our negotiation process has been suspended since 2018. Although the Customs Union forms the most important pillar of our relations with the EU, no progress has been made in updating it. The visa issue remains an open wound. The Cyprus issue and Türkiye’s drift away from EU membership criteria have brought relations to a difficult stage. Particularly after Trump came to power, European countries’ need to allocate more resources to defence and develop their capabilities has highlighted Türkiye’s importance as a strategic defence actor. However, the report points to shortcomings and problems in terms of political and economic criteria.

President Zeytinoğlu emphasised that global developments have increased the importance of Türkiye-EU relations and drew attention to the statements made by German Chancellor Merz during his visit to Türkiye:

"During his visit to Türkiye, German Chancellor Merz drew attention to the strategic dialogue between the two countries and said he wanted to see Türkiye alongside the EU. Although this could be interpreted as a signal of membership, it is actually in line with the Christian Democratic Party, to which Merz belongs, which advocates concepts such as privileged partnership. However, EU membership is ideal for Türkiye. It participates in EU decision-making processes. To achieve this, it is necessary to revive EU reforms, from law and justice to the economy."

Finally, President Zeytinoğlu referred to the 2025 Türkiye report released today:

"The report states that Türkiye is well prepared in terms of being a functioning market economy and coping with competitive pressures. However, it also contains negative assessments, such as regression in the areas of the rule of law and fundamental rights, lack of progress in areas such as the fight against corruption, deterioration of the human rights situation, and regression in freedom of expression. With regard to Türkiye’s alignment with the EU acquis, the picture is mixed. While alignment is advanced in areas such as economic policies, company law and the free movement of goods, further steps are needed in areas such as the compatibility of state aid with competition rules, the transparency of public procurement, social policy and climate policy. The report also includes important recommendations such as aligning education with labour market needs, diversifying energy supply, increasing the share of renewables, and improving SMEs’ access to long-term finance. We should take note of the constructive criticism and recommendations in the report.

The European Commission’s reports on Türkiye increasingly emphasise foreign, security and defence policy. While political dialogue on foreign and security policy between the EU and Türkiye continues, it is noted that Türkiye’s compliance with the statements of the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Council decisions fell from 6% in 2024 to 4% in 2025. This situation highlights the need for much more comprehensive coordination and cooperation between Türkiye and the EU on regional issues and areas of cooperation, common security issues and defence against threats. The EU’s approach to the Cyprus issue and maritime jurisdiction areas in the Eastern Mediterranean does not take Türkiye’s arguments into account and reflects the perspective of Greece and the Republic of Cyprus. It is crucial that the European Commission does not take sides against Türkiye on this issue and plays a constructive and conciliatory role.

A significant shortcoming of the report is that it does not contain recommendations on why the negotiation process with Türkiye is on hold and how it can be revived. Despite existing problems, Türkiye is better prepared than other candidate countries in terms of its capacity to comply with and implement the EU acquis. If the EU returns to its reform agenda and renews its political will, the goal of membership could be back on the agenda.