Cairo, May 09: The European Union would “lose credibility” if it blocks Turkey’s entry into the bloc, warns former Spanish Prime Minister Felipe Gonzalez.
The bloc was committed to make Turkey a part of Europe, but, unfortunately, it seems the EU is backing down on its words, Gonzalez said on Saturday.
“Europe should honor its commitment,” he told reporters after unveiling the Project Europe 2030 report, which analyzes the challenges the EU may face in 2030. The EU “should not lose credibility by not being able to proceed,” he underlined.
The report’s conclusions, delivered on the 60th anniversary of a declaration considered the bloc’s founding text, said that the EU “must honor its commitments with regard to current official enlargement candidates, including Turkey, and pursue the path of negotiation.”
He said that if the EU does not have sufficient maneuvering margin to complete its talks with Turkey, some agreement has to be reached on the subject.
The European Union’s failure to reach an agreement on Turkey’s accession has prompted Ankara not to meet EU demands over opening its air space and sea ports to Cyprus. Turkey has also refused to acknowledge the Greek Cypriot government until the island’s division is resolved.
——-Agencies