Turkey continues to move further away from the European Union and its accession negotiations, according to the conclusions on enlargement adopted on Tuesday evening by the General Affairs Council in Brussels.
“Therefore, effectively these have come to a standstill and no further chapters can be considered for opening or closing,” added the conclusions.
That is when the Council also called on Turkey to “stop all threats and actions that damage good neighbourly relations, normalise its relations with the Republic of Cyprus and respect the sovereignty of all EU Member States over their territorial sea and airspace as well as all their sovereign rights, including inter alia the right to explore and exploit natural resources, in accordance with EU and international law, including the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)”.
Moreover, the Council noted that Turkey should fulfil its obligations under the Negotiating Framework.
And this includes the full, non-discriminatory implementation of the Additional Protocol to the Association Agreement towards all Member States and reiterates that recognition of all Member States is essential.
Turkey, which still occupies part of EU-member Cyprus after an invasion in 1974 refuses to recognize Nicosia. Numerous UN-brokered attempts to reunite the island have failed mainly because of Turkey’s intransigent stand.
“The EU remains fully committed to a comprehensive settlement of the Cyprus problem,” the conclusions also said.
“It recalls that it remains crucial in this regard that Turkey commits and contributes to a peaceful settlement, including its external aspects, within the UN framework, on the basis of a bicommunal, bizonal federation with political equality, in accordance with all relevant UNSC resolutions and in line with the principles on which the EU is founded and the acquis” the conclusions added.
