European Parliament’s approval of a report that called for extending a freeze on Türkiye’s European Union accession process was condemned by Ankara.
The 2023-2024 Türkiye Report just passed by the European Parliament contains distorted, biased and unfounded allegations against the country, the Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Wednesday.
“We reject the unfounded assessments of an institution that provides propaganda grounds for terrorist organizations and the groups that have made anti-Türkiye sentiments their raison d’etre, on the political dynamics in our country, our foreign policy and the visit of our President to the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus,” the statement said.
It added: “The 2023-2024 Türkiye Report, adopted today (May 7) by the European Parliament’s (EP) Plenary Session, contains distorted, prejudiced and baseless allegations against Türkiye.”
The statement voiced the expectation that, in the coming days, the European Parliament will fulfill its responsibilities to ensure that Türkiye’s relations with the European Union – including its EU accession process – are maintained “based on mutual benefit.”
Three hundred sixty-seven members of the European Parliament voted in favor of the report prepared by rapporteur Nacho Sanchez Amor, while 74 voted against it and 188 members abstained.
The non-binding resolution of the European Parliament said Türkiye’s geopolitical and strategic importance cannot make up for the government’s democratic backsliding and EU membership criteria are not up for negotiation.
The resolution openly sided with the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), which claims the arrest of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoğlu in March is politically motivated. Turkish authorities have repeatedly highlighted the independence of the judiciary, which ruled for the mayor’s arrest on a spate of corruption charges, from rigging tenders to taking bribes in exchange for issuing building permits.
European Parliament members also defined President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s recent visit to the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) as illegal and accused him of provocation. They referred to Erdoğan’s statements in events held in Lefkoşa (Nicosia) last weekend, where he voiced support for the TRNC in its bid for a solution to the decades-long Cyprus question. Speaking to reporters during his return to Türkiye from the TRNC, Erdoğan reiterated Türkiye’s support for the TRNC and said the country would “sooner or later gain sovereign equality and equal international status.”
Türkiye backs the TRNC’s opposition to a federation in the island, an idea proposed in the past for the two communities to have an equal say in the island’s affairs. Greece and Greek Cypriots advocate for one sovereign state on the island.
“The motherland, Türkiye, will always stand with the TRNC and our solidarity will last forever. We sincerely desire a fair, lasting, sustainable and realistic solution,” he said. “Developments in our region show that this reality should be accepted now. It is time for everybody to accept that the island hosts two peoples and two states. As the motherland and guarantor state, our support to Turkish Cypriots, to their independent state, will prevail. Turkish Cypriot people, an inseparable part of the Turkic world, by God’s will, will reach the point they desired, with the support of our country,” Erdoğan said.