EU's Füle meets Turkish opposition

ANKARA - Hürriyet Daily News

"It’s very important how this debate is going to end," EU’s Enlargement Commissioner Stefan Füle told reporters on mixed-sex accommodation debate at a press conference in Ankara Nov 8. AA photo

As the first meeting of the day, Füle gathered with Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) co-chair Gültan Kışanak, People’s Democratic Party (HDP) co-chair Ertuğrul Kürkçü and BDP’s External Relations Commission member Hatice Çoban at a breakfast meeting.

Füle told them content of the latest democratization package announced by Erdoğan on Sept. 30 was below his expectations and it needed to be strengthened, BDP executives told Hürriyet Daily News.

Füle was already aware of Turkey’s plans to build a wall along the Syrian border as well as the recent killing of a young BDP member in an attack alleged to have been organized by members of the Free Cause Party (Hüda-Par), which is connected to the Turkish Hizbullah. Both issues are subject of grave concerns for the BDP and the HDP and Füle’s office had already conveyed their concerns over the incidents to related ministries, BDP officials said.

Füle also paid a visit to the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) and met with party leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu. During the closed-door meeting, the CHP leader told Füle EU officials should visit Turkey more frequently in order to increase public awareness of Turkey’s EU process, CHP sources told the Daily News.

The CHP and European Commission will work closer according to a mutual understanding reached at the meeting. Accordingly, in line with a recent agreement to form “informal working groups” between the CHP and the Commission, efforts from those groups will be intensified soon.