Ankara rejects European Parliament’s ‘biased, unrealistic’ report on Turkey

ANKARA 

A report by the European Parliament (EP) on Turkey is biased and unrealistic, the Foreign Ministry said on June 7, saying the 2021 country report of the EU body evaluates Turkey from a “shallow perspective.”

“While the need to strengthen the relations between our country and the EU through mutual efforts is evident, we do not accept and reject the EP’s biased and unrealistic assessments in the report, ignoring this need with a shallow and visionless approach,” the Foreign Ministry said in a written statement.

The 2021 Turkey report by the EP, which has a recommendation status, was accepted at the EP General Assembly on June 7.

Turkey’s primary expectation from the EP is that it does not become a “tool in the agenda of narrow-minded circles” and that it displays an encouraging attitude towards EU institutions in order to revive the accession negotiation process, said the statement.

“Unfortunately, the EP has so far taken the opposite stance. This attitude of the EP, which even tolerates terrorist organization members nesting in the EP and making terrorist propaganda, is actually not surprising. Thus, the EP has lost both its credibility and credibility in the eyes of the Turkish public,” said the ministry.

For this reason, the “baseless” views in the report reflecting the claims of democracy, rule of law and human rights regarding Turkey and the “narrow-minded” efforts of one or two EU members on the Aegean, Eastern Mediterranean and Cyprus issues are of no use to Ankara, it stated.

Turkey’s expectation from the EU is that all EU institutions fulfill their obligations towards Turkey, revitalize the accession process within this framework, accelerate the Visa Liberalization Dialogue, start negotiations for the update of the Customs Union, increase cooperation in the fight against terrorism, especially Voluntary Humanitarian Affairs within the scope of migration cooperation, along with the implementation of the Readmission Plan, said the statement.

“This report, which evaluates Turkey with a shallow perspective instead of encouraging steps to be taken on these issues, constitutes a new example of the EP’s detached, ideological and biased attitude and only damages the EP’s reputation,” stated the ministry.