Italian MEPs' fury at Turkey-EU talks: ’How long will Brussels want to be humiliated?'


European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen was taken aback to find her fellow top EU official taking the only chair available next to Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan when the duo visited Ankara, and her spokesman made that clear on Wednesday. The move by the Turkish leader sparked the outrage of Italian League MEPs in Brussels now calling on the EU Commission chief to take action against Ankara. 

In a joint note by MEPs Marco Zanni, Marco Campomenosi, Anna Cinzia Bonfrisco and Susanna Ceccardi, the Commission was also urged to clarify whether the recent arrest of 10 former Navy admirals by President Erdogan were among the things discussed in Ankara on Tuesday.

They said: “The entire international community is indignant at Erdogan’s institutional rudeness to Ursula Von der Leyen, but the EU for too long has turned its gaze elsewhere and pretended not to see while Turkey committed even more serious acts on the human rights front and the rule of law: it is time for Brussels to pull the plug from negotiations and negotiations with the dictator.

“In recent days, the Ankara government has committed yet another strong action, arresting 10 former Navy admirals who had highlighted the dangers of a possible Turkish exit from the Montreux Convention and launched an appeal for Turkey to remain a secular and democratic country based on the rule of law.

“The authoritarian and undemocratic methods used for the repression of opposition political forces and civil organisations and the repeated violations of human rights are unacceptable: we have submitted a question to the European Commission to clarify whether the episode was discussed during the meeting of Aril 6, in addition to issues of human rights and the rule of law.

“But above all to find out on the basis of which elements and conditions the EU deems it appropriate to open towards a country that has proved itself anti-European in fact and far from European values.

“How long will Brussels want to be blackmailed and humiliated by Ankara?”

More to follow…



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