Friday

29th Sep 2023

EU leaders grasp Turkey's olive branch

  • European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen and EU Council president Charles Michel on Thursday (Photo: consilium.europa.eu)

EU leaders have offered more refugee aid and customs perks to Turkey at a video-summit also attended by US president Joe Biden.

The European Commission was to come forward with "continuation of financing for Syrian refugees in Turkey" they said, after having already spent €6bn on the programme.

Read and decide

Join EUobserver today

Become an expert on Europe

Get instant access to all articles — and 20 years of archives. 14-day free trial.

... or subscribe as a group

And "the European Union is ready to engage with Turkey in a phased, proportionate, and reversible manner" they added on Thursday (25 March), mentioning modernisation of an EU-Turkey customs union.

They praised the fact Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan had mended his ways.

"We welcome the recent de-escalation in the eastern Mediterranean through the discontinuation of illegal drilling activities, the resumption of bilateral talks between Greece and Turkey, and the forthcoming talks on the Cyprus problem," they said, referring to an old frozen conflict between Turkey and Cyprus.

But the EU also threatened "to use the instruments and options at its disposal to defend its interests" if Erdoğan went back to poor form.

The EU sanctions options include blacklisting of Turkish officials and entities and economic strikes, such as a ban on tourist services in Turkey, according to an internal paper seen by EUobserver.

The paper also said Turkey should make a "concrete" gesture of taking back 1,450 refugees who crossed to Greece to start the ball rolling on the new agenda.

"We really hope it will be possible to improve the relationship with Turkey, but at the same time ... it is important that Turkey keep a positive behaviour, a moderate behaviour," EU Council president Charles Michel told press on Thursday.

Both he and Commission president Ursula von der Leyen promised they would not throw human rights in Turkey under the bus for strategic reasons.

"Rule of law and democracy are absolutely key to any dialogue we have with Turkey," Michel said.

Von der Leyen "deplored" the fact Turkey recently walked out of an international treaty to stop violence against women, but she took the heat off Ankara by noting some EU states had still not joined it either.

"We call on all member states in the European Union to ratify the convention," she said, alluding to Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, and Slovakia.

The EU summit, which focused on vaccines, had a feel-good factor when US president Joe Biden briefly joined the video-talks.

It was the first time an American president had done so in 11 years and it marked a symbolic return to the good old days after the turbulent years of Biden's predecessor, the anti-EU Donald Trump.

"America is back. And we are happy you are back," Michel said in his opening remarks to a smiling Biden on the screen.

"What we are seeing is [that] values of democracy and the rule of law are under threat again," Michel later told press, after the EU and US recently imposed new human-rights sanctions on China and Russia.

"More than ever now, the United States and the European Union have a responsibility for the generations to come," Michel added.

A White House statement said Biden "expressed his desire to work together on shared foreign policy interests, including China and Russia".

But Thursday's smiles masked points of disagreement.

The US, on Wednesday, threatened to use sanctions against EU firms if they completed a Russian gas pipeline to Germany called Nord Stream 2.

It is also wary of an EU investment pact with China, its growing superpower rival.

Merkel's 'sovereignty'

For all that, German chancellor Angela Merkel said there were "a large number of commonalities that we want to cultivate", with the US, listing China, Russia, and Turkey policy.

But the EU ought to be free to forge independent China-trade relations, she added.

"It's not just about economic interests, but also about living up to what we also call European sovereignty ... we also have our own interests," she said.

"There's a greater premium than at any time since I've been involved in these issues, on finding ways to work together, again," US secretary of state Antony Blinken, who was in Brussels on Thursday, also said after meeting Belgian foreign minister Sophie Wilmès.

"A basic tenet of the Biden-Harris administration is consulting with our friends [in the EU], early and often," he added, referring to US vice president Kamala Harris.

Von der Leyen: 'I felt alone as a woman'

EU Commission president Ursula von der Leyen blamed sexism for having been relegated to a sofa in Ankara during a meeting with Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in the presence of European Council president Charles Michel.

Erdoğan orders out US and EU ambassadors

Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has ordered out the ambassadors of his top Nato allies and Western investors, in what his opponents called a reckless political stunt.

Opinion

Punish Belarus too for aiding Putin's Ukraine war

While Belarus has not sent its own troops to fight Russia's war in Ukraine, the Minsk dictatorship has been heavily involved. As a result, Belarus must be punished for its involvement — what can the world do to sanction Belarus?

Latest News

  1. EU women promised new dawn under anti-violence pact
  2. Three steps EU can take to halt Azerbaijan's mafia-style bullying
  3. Punish Belarus too for aiding Putin's Ukraine war
  4. Added-value for Russia diamond ban, as G7 and EU prepare sanctions
  5. EU states to agree on asylum crisis bill, say EU officials
  6. Poland's culture of fear after three years of abortion 'ban'
  7. Time for a reset: EU regional funding needs overhauling
  8. Germany tightens police checks on Czech and Polish border

Stakeholders' Highlights

  1. Nordic Council of MinistersThe Nordic Region is stepping up its efforts to reduce food waste
  2. International Medical Devices Regulators Forum (IMDRF)Join regulators, industry & healthcare experts at the 24th IMDRF session, September 25-26, Berlin. Register by 20 Sept to join in person or online.
  3. UNOPSUNOPS begins works under EU-funded project to repair schools in Ukraine
  4. Georgia Ministry of Foreign AffairsGeorgia effectively prevents sanctions evasion against Russia – confirm EU, UK, USA
  5. International Medical Devices Regulators Forum (IMDRF)Join regulators & industry experts at the 24th IMDRF session- Berlin September 25-26. Register early for discounted hotel rates
  6. Nordic Council of MinistersGlobal interest in the new Nordic Nutrition Recommendations – here are the speakers for the launch

Stakeholders' Highlights

  1. Nordic Council of Ministers20 June: Launch of the new Nordic Nutrition Recommendations
  2. International Sustainable Finance CentreJoin CEE Sustainable Finance Summit, 15 – 19 May 2023, high-level event for finance & business
  3. ICLEISeven actionable measures to make food procurement in Europe more sustainable
  4. World BankWorld Bank Report Highlights Role of Human Development for a Successful Green Transition in Europe
  5. Nordic Council of MinistersNordic summit to step up the fight against food loss and waste
  6. Nordic Council of MinistersThink-tank: Strengthen co-operation around tech giants’ influence in the Nordics

Join EUobserver

Support quality EU news

Join us