Türkiye may give up its dream of joining the EU

(Baonghean.vn) - Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on September 6 that the government is facing "huge pressure" from the people demanding that it abandon its bid to join the European Union (EU) after decades of efforts to join the common European home.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu. Photo: Reuters.

Mr Cavusoglu also warned that Europe could face instability and extremism due to the "dual" economic and migration crisis that would follow Türkiye's abandonment of EU membership.

Explaining the pressure from the people on the Turkish government, Mr. Cavusoglu said, "The Turkish people see that the EU is trying to apply double standards to their country. So they want the government to stop negotiations with the EU."

Ankara has been campaigning for EU membership for decades and officially began accession talks in 2005. However, Ankara has long argued that the EU is treating it differently from other candidate countries.

Afterwards, some politicians in Europe spoke out to admit opposing Türkiye for reasons related to democracy and human rights issues in this country.

Relations between the two sides have become particularly tense after EU governments criticized President Erdogan's large-scale purge following the failed coup on the night of July 15.

However, the EU still needs Türkiye’s support in reducing the number of migrants and refugees from the Middle East. In return, Brussels has promised to step up EU-Türkiye negotiations and allow Turkish citizens to travel freely within the bloc.

Mr. Cavusoglu also reaffirmed on September 6 that the commitment to accept war refugees on Turkish territory will be invalid if the EU does not respect its commitment to allow Turkish people to travel visa-free between countries in the bloc.

Thanh Hien

(According to Reuters)