Now EU is talking about economic sanctions
Mr. Schulz and his friends will learn that the EU has more to lose than Turkey if they try to impose any form of sanctions
More enmity and more hatred from the European Union... Now European Parliament chief Martin Schulz is threatening Turkey with economic sanctions. There is also talk at the EU that should Turkey reintroduce capital punishment Brussels will suspend full membership negotiations and shelf Turkey's candidacy.
Instead of seeking ways to understand what the Ankara is doing after the failed bloody military coup attempt on July 15 the EU seems to be acting as if it is deeply frustrated that the Turkish people took to the streets, saved their democracy and put an end to a bid to create a new junta regime in the country.
In the past when Greece, Spain and Portugal suffered similar shocks the EU was extremely supportive to the countries and had them admitted as full members despite the fact that they were far from ready for accession.
Yet, we see European hypocrisy at its best when it comes to Turkey. They should have at least tried to help Turkey overcome the trauma of this deadly coup attempt and yet they are actually trying to help either the people who were behind the coup or those who are still collaborating with the coup plotters to destabilize Turkey.
The PKK is continuing its terrorist campaign unabated using weapons made by EU countries, the Kurdish nationalist Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), which is represented in Parliament, is acting as an active supporter of the violent secessionist movement and thus some of its deputies are facing prosecution. What is sad is that instead of the EU condemning the terrorists and the secessionist war they are waging, the EU has sided with them and wants Turkey to bow to them. When Turkey refuses to bow to the terrorists and when Turkey refuses to bow to the coup plotters it gets threatened with economic sanctions.
Mr. Schulz and people like him do not really know what they are talking about. EU sanctions against Turkey are the last thing they want. It seems they are not aware of the Customs Union Treaty they signed with Turkey in 1996. Even though this treaty is at times working against our interests it also shows that the EU cannot toy around with the treaty and create new tariffs on Turkey.
The EU exports high technology to Turkey and our country is an extremely valuable market for the European companies who would themselves be harmed by any sanctions. Turkey is no Iran.
All the EU can do against Turkey is to toy around with its labor force in the EU countries and slow down the use of EU funds to Turkey. Our information is that there are already pressure on the use of EU funds by Turkey, so that is really no threat.
Mr. Schulz and his friends will learn that the EU has more to lose than Turkey if they try to impose any form of sanctions. But Shultz and people like him who like to threaten "friends" should also realize that those "friends" have more valuable cards to use against them like the migrant Syrians who would love to flood the borders of major EU member countries.
Suspending Turkey's candidacy and shelving our accession negotiations are meaningless as we are now fully aware that this is a charade where we will be kept at the negotiating table forever and will never become a full member. If they carry out their threats it will only be displaying the obvious. Then we can all go our separate ways...
Instead of seeking ways to understand what the Ankara is doing after the failed bloody military coup attempt on July 15 the EU seems to be acting as if it is deeply frustrated that the Turkish people took to the streets, saved their democracy and put an end to a bid to create a new junta regime in the country.
In the past when Greece, Spain and Portugal suffered similar shocks the EU was extremely supportive to the countries and had them admitted as full members despite the fact that they were far from ready for accession.
Yet, we see European hypocrisy at its best when it comes to Turkey. They should have at least tried to help Turkey overcome the trauma of this deadly coup attempt and yet they are actually trying to help either the people who were behind the coup or those who are still collaborating with the coup plotters to destabilize Turkey.
The PKK is continuing its terrorist campaign unabated using weapons made by EU countries, the Kurdish nationalist Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), which is represented in Parliament, is acting as an active supporter of the violent secessionist movement and thus some of its deputies are facing prosecution. What is sad is that instead of the EU condemning the terrorists and the secessionist war they are waging, the EU has sided with them and wants Turkey to bow to them. When Turkey refuses to bow to the terrorists and when Turkey refuses to bow to the coup plotters it gets threatened with economic sanctions.
Mr. Schulz and people like him do not really know what they are talking about. EU sanctions against Turkey are the last thing they want. It seems they are not aware of the Customs Union Treaty they signed with Turkey in 1996. Even though this treaty is at times working against our interests it also shows that the EU cannot toy around with the treaty and create new tariffs on Turkey.
The EU exports high technology to Turkey and our country is an extremely valuable market for the European companies who would themselves be harmed by any sanctions. Turkey is no Iran.
All the EU can do against Turkey is to toy around with its labor force in the EU countries and slow down the use of EU funds to Turkey. Our information is that there are already pressure on the use of EU funds by Turkey, so that is really no threat.
Mr. Schulz and his friends will learn that the EU has more to lose than Turkey if they try to impose any form of sanctions. But Shultz and people like him who like to threaten "friends" should also realize that those "friends" have more valuable cards to use against them like the migrant Syrians who would love to flood the borders of major EU member countries.
Suspending Turkey's candidacy and shelving our accession negotiations are meaningless as we are now fully aware that this is a charade where we will be kept at the negotiating table forever and will never become a full member. If they carry out their threats it will only be displaying the obvious. Then we can all go our separate ways...