Finnish President Alexander Stubb advocates for inclusion of Türkiye to European Union. He also suggested expansion to Canada as well.
Stubb was speaking at a conference in Helsinki on Wednesday. “No one is talking about (Türkiye) any more. We need to think seriously about Türkiye,” he said as he called for bloc’s expansion from 27 member states to around 40, including Canada. “We need to open our minds to understand that, at least from a security perspective, Turkey needs to be as close as possible,” he stated. He stated that United Kingdom, Canada, Norway and Iceland should be viewed as potential candidates for the bloc as well.
The EU has long maintained its stance on keeping Türkiye at its door, while Ankara was forced to establish one-on-one beneficial cooperation with members of the bloc, which always placed obstacles before it. Under the leadership of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Türkiye has shifted its absolute alignment with the EU in terms of strategic cooperation to a balanced relationship. It did not lose the ambition for full membership to the bloc, but did not idle around while waiting for membership invitation after completing most of the criteria the EU asked to fulfill. It built new partnerships across the globe rather than remaining focused on Europe.
