Turkish EU minister Bağış congratulates Merkel’s triumph

ANKARA

German Chancellor Angela Merkel looks up during a news conference following a Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party board meeting after the 2013 German federal elections at CDU party headquarters in Berlin, Germany, 23 September 2013. AA photo

Turkish EU Minister Egemen Bağış has praised German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s electoral triumph, saying her success is “praiseworthy in terms of democratic standards.”

“I hope her triumph will be beneficial for herself, her county and the Turkish community in Germany,” Bağış told reporters today, after Merkel’s Christian Democrats (CDU) party secured a third straight term in power, receiving 41.5 percent of the votes. 

“I believe Merkel will take the necessary steps to improve bilateral relations,” Bağış said, adding that her triumph would mark a new start for Turkey-EU relations. He said Ankara endorsed a “privileged partnership” for Turkey-Germany bilateral relations, but stressed that Turkey would continue holding talks with the EU in a bid for full membership.

Bağış also noted that Merkel was the most successful politician in the history of German federal elections, adding that there were two leaders in Europe who had won elections by increasing their votes for three terms, one being Merkel and the other being Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

The latest election in Germany shows that Turks in Germany are more sensitive in going to the polls and showed that they are an important political actor in the country, Bağış added.