ERBIL, Kurdistan Region--A senior Turkish official has said the European Union failed to give Turkey the support it needed during and after the thwarted coup attempt, adding that this disappointed Ankara and the Turkish people.
“Stronger support should have been given,” said Turkey’s EU Minister Omer Celik, following an informal meeting with EU foreign ministers in the Slovakian capital Bratislava on Saturday, according to Anadolu news.
Speaking at a press conference afterwards, Celik said he “clearly expressed that our government and the Turkish people felt disappointed,” at the reaction of the EU. He pointed out that while some EU leaders condemned the coup in a single sentence, they then took nine sentences to question how democratic Turkey was after the coup.
“During the meeting, I informed my counterparts about how the president of our republic, our prime minister, and members of our government were intended for assassination and how during the attempted coup our parliament and Presidential Palace were bombed,” Celik said.
His comments follow remarks made by two Members of the European Parliament (MEPs), Elmar Brok and Kati Piri, who argued on Tuesday that the EU made “mistakes” in its initial reaction to the Turkish coup.
“We have underestimated the traumatic impact of the coup attempt on the Turkish people,” Piri said.
Brok also said that the EU had been insensitive, reminding his fellow MEPs that the coup plotters narrowly missed killing 125 members of the Turkish parliament with rocket fire.
“It became clear to me,” Brok said, “that Turkey has gone through a shock.”
Relations between the EU and Turkey soured after the attempted coup as EU officials criticized Turkey’s crackdown, putting at risk the deal to stem the flow of migrants into Europe.
After their meeting on Saturday, Celik said that Turkey will implement the migrant deal for “humanitarian reasons” but, without an agreement on visa liberalization, a key sticking point for Ankara, “Turkey will not be very positive about taking new steps to set up new mechanisms.”
He warned that the current deal would likely not be enough if further crises occur.
The EU has demanded that Turkey narrow its definition of terrorism before granting visa-free travel, something Ankara has refused to do. In the face of the terror threats Turkey is facing, it is “not rational at all to expect Turkey to make any change in the Turkish anti-terror law,” Celik said.
“Stronger support should have been given,” said Turkey’s EU Minister Omer Celik, following an informal meeting with EU foreign ministers in the Slovakian capital Bratislava on Saturday, according to Anadolu news.
Speaking at a press conference afterwards, Celik said he “clearly expressed that our government and the Turkish people felt disappointed,” at the reaction of the EU. He pointed out that while some EU leaders condemned the coup in a single sentence, they then took nine sentences to question how democratic Turkey was after the coup.
“During the meeting, I informed my counterparts about how the president of our republic, our prime minister, and members of our government were intended for assassination and how during the attempted coup our parliament and Presidential Palace were bombed,” Celik said.
His comments follow remarks made by two Members of the European Parliament (MEPs), Elmar Brok and Kati Piri, who argued on Tuesday that the EU made “mistakes” in its initial reaction to the Turkish coup.
“We have underestimated the traumatic impact of the coup attempt on the Turkish people,” Piri said.
Brok also said that the EU had been insensitive, reminding his fellow MEPs that the coup plotters narrowly missed killing 125 members of the Turkish parliament with rocket fire.
“It became clear to me,” Brok said, “that Turkey has gone through a shock.”
Relations between the EU and Turkey soured after the attempted coup as EU officials criticized Turkey’s crackdown, putting at risk the deal to stem the flow of migrants into Europe.
After their meeting on Saturday, Celik said that Turkey will implement the migrant deal for “humanitarian reasons” but, without an agreement on visa liberalization, a key sticking point for Ankara, “Turkey will not be very positive about taking new steps to set up new mechanisms.”
He warned that the current deal would likely not be enough if further crises occur.
The EU has demanded that Turkey narrow its definition of terrorism before granting visa-free travel, something Ankara has refused to do. In the face of the terror threats Turkey is facing, it is “not rational at all to expect Turkey to make any change in the Turkish anti-terror law,” Celik said.
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