Turkish President criticizes EU as 'sick'

Speaking to thousands of supporters ahead of the referendum scheduled for April 16, Mr Erdogan called the EU "sick".

President Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday criticized the European Union (EU), further deepening tensions in relations with the bloc as Türkiye prepares for a referendum to expand presidential powers.

Speaking to thousands of supporters ahead of the referendum scheduled for April 16, Mr Erdogan called the EU "sick".

Speaking to thousands of supporters ahead of the referendum scheduled for April 16, Mr Erdogan called the EU "sick". Illustration photo: AA photo.

Mr Erdogan has called the EU “sick”, pledged to review future ties with the bloc and criticised a set of EU membership rules known as the “Copenhagen criteria”.

“They are afraid that Türkiye will become stronger with the new system,” Erdogan said. “They made us wait for 54 years and now they are still holding Türkiye back.

“We know why they did it, accepting countries that are not comparable to Türkiye in terms of democracy and economy into the bloc,” Erdogan stressed. “I always say that if the Copenhagen criteria do not work, we will continue our way, with the Ankara criteria, and tomorrow will be a turning point for that.”

Speaking on Turkish television channel TRT earlier, President Erdogan also affirmed that the country's "abandoning" on the waiting list outside the European Union was against common sense, and emphasized that "each side must know its place".

He also announced that a referendum on constitutional reforms to increase presidential powers will take place tomorrow (April 16) and asserted that public opinion surveys show that 55% to 60% of voters support amending the Constitution.

Tensions over the referendum in Türkiye have flared up after several European countries blocked Erdogan's government ministers from holding rallies abroad to encourage the Turkish community to actively participate in the upcoming referendum.

Tensions were pushed to a boiling point when President Erdogan criticized the Netherlands and Germany for behaving “like fascists”.

Türkiye began negotiations to join the European Union in 2005. However, the negotiations have been very slow and have been hampered by tensions between the two sides./.

According to VOV