Turkey welcomes EU’s deals with Georgia, Moldova, Ukraine

ANKARA

European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso, center, speaks during a signing ceremony at an EU summit in Brussels on Friday, June 27, 2014. AP Photo

New association agreements the European Union has signed with Moldova, Ukraine and Georgia will make long-term contributions to peace and stability in the region and around the continent, according to Turkey.

“We consider that the signing of association agreements between the European Union and Moldova, Georgia and Ukraine demonstrates the democratic will of the three countries for their European Union vocation and that these agreements, besides creating important political and economic gains for the abovementioned countries, will make long-term contributions to the peace and stability in the region and all over Europe,” read a written statement issued by the Foreign Ministry over the weekend.

“Turkey, as a European Union candidate country that has made considerable progress in its accession process, will continue to support the European vocation of those three countries we consider as friends and neighbors in the following process,” it added.