Sergey Lagodinsky debates EU-Turkey relations and European Parliament report скачать в хорошем качестве

Sergey Lagodinsky debates EU-Turkey relations and European Parliament report

Sergey Lagodinsky, on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group. – Madam President, Mr Commissioner, dear rapporteur, dear colleagues, it’s the same procedure as every year – almost every year – and honestly, this procedure is getting more and more tiring. Every year we speak about human rights, democracy, about the situation in south—eastern Turkey, about Cyprus, about Greece. And even those of us who are most open towards European perspectives for Turkey are getting tired and are getting frustrated. But this year there is one more topic, a topic that has a potential not to damage but to destroy our relationship, because it is about security. It’s about existential issues for EU members. It’s about reliability of Turkey as a defence partner. Turkish support for Ukraine has been an important cornerstone of Ukraine’s defence and we did applaud Turkey for this. But Turkey is blocking NATO’s membership of two countries bordering or close to Russia, to the aggressor now. This is an issue of collective security, and this is a question of solidarity with two EU members. And we cannot rely on supportive and understandable behaviour of Turkish government here. And if we can’t rely on Turkey in the matter like this, if Turkish Government is using the NATO accession issue to leverage their own agenda, then we have to say to our Turkish partners, this is not the right way to go. The damage that is being done here to Turkey’s reputation as an alliance member is immense and goes beyond what this government imagines. All of us, those who believe in Turkey’s European future, are losing our faith. We’re losing our faith when we see the ruling on Gezi case. We’re losing our faith when we see the position on NATO accession. We call on our Turkish friends, and this report is one of the last calls, to stop this path away from the European Union. Let’s work together. Let’s return to the same European table. #eudebates the unique initiative aiming to promote debate, dialogue, knowledge, participation and communication among citizens. #Turkey #borders #Greece #Cyprus #Russia #LAW #Ukraine #Energy #inflation #Mediterranean #Erdoğan Turkey: persistently further from EU values and standards Without clear and significant progress on EU-related reforms, Parliament cannot envisage resuming accession negotiations with Turkey, warned MEPs on Tuesday. In a report adopted on Tuesday by 448 votes in favour, 67 against and 107 abstentions, MEPs warn that in spite of Turkey’s repeated statements that it aims to become an EU member, over the past two years the country has consistently gone back on its commitments in relation to the accession process. Parliament welcomes the recent slight improvement in overall EU-Turkey relations, in particular, the high-level dialogues. This enhanced cooperation has unfortunately coexisted alongside regular conflicts, as relations with neighbouring EU member states remain challenging, stress MEPs. The report points to the continued deterioration of the human rights situation in Turkey. MEPs regret the sustained legal and administrative pressure on civil society and human rights defenders, lawyers and journalists. They call on the Commission to provide sufficient funding for pro-democracy efforts in Turkey. Importance of close EU-Turkey cooperation in foreign and security policy Welcoming Turkey’s willingness to act as a mediator in the Russian war against Ukraine, MEPs stress the vital importance of good EU-Turkey cooperation in foreign and security policy in the current challenging times and thank the country for its firm alignment with NATO and the EU. The report commends Turkey’s efforts in continuing to host the largest refugee population in the world, and notes the sustained provision of EU funding for this purpose, which MEPs commit to maintain in the future. They also support the Commission’s proposal to start negotiations to update a mutually beneficial Customs Union, but warn that Parliament would only support a final agreement if necessary democratic conditions on human rights and fundamental freedoms, respect of international law and good neighbourly relations are met. To sum-up, Parliament cannot at this stage justify modifying its position concerning the formal suspension of the accession negotiations with Turkey, which have effectively been at a standstill since 2018, MEPs say. By openly defying the binding rulings of the European Court of Human Rights in relation to the case of Osman Kavala and others, the current Turkish Government has deliberately demolished any aspirations of reopening the EU accession process at this time, they add. Turkish objections to Sweden and Finland’s NATO applications