EU says seeking 'constructive relationship' with Türkiye for 'shared prosperity, stability'

By Agnes Szucs

BRUSSELS (AA) – The EU is ready to engage with Türkiye towards a "constructive relationship for shared prosperity and stability," an EU official said on Monday.

Speaking to reporters at the European Commission's daily news briefing, Ana Pisonero, spokesperson on enlargement, confirmed that the EU "has a strategic interest in continuing with cooperative and mutually beneficial relationship with Türkiye and all of its people."

She reaffirmed the bloc's readiness "to engage with Türkiye in order to advance towards a constructive relationship for shared prosperity and stability" to be built on "commitments to human rights, rule of law, international law, and stability for the benefit of all of our citizens."

Pisonero also underlined that the EU-Türkiye cooperation supports a "stable, secure environment in Eastern Mediterranean."

Following the request of the EU leaders' summit in June, the European Commission is currently working on a "report on the state of play of EU-Türkiye relations" that will be published later this autumn, she added.

Pisonero's remarks came after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan accused on Sunday the EU of failing to keep its promises to Türkiye.

"Türkiye has no expectations from the EU, whose door we have been made waiting at 60 years," Erdogan said.

Türkiye applied for EU membership in 1987, and its accession talks began in 2005 but the Council of the European Union, the EU institution representing member states, decided to suspend negotiations in 2018.

According to Ankara, talks have been frozen due to political roadblocks by certain EU members, for reasons unrelated to Türkiye's suitability for EU membership.