President Erdoğan: “As a nation, we envision our future with the EU. We have never given up on full membership. "
The EU accepting our country to full membership will be an ontological choice for the future of the union, just as our country's 60-year membership process is a strategic choice for us."
EU Council President Charles Michel and EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will come to our country at the end of this month. We will hold meetings.
Erdoğan: Turkey ready to set 'positive agenda' with EU
Turkey is ready to set a 'positive agenda' with the European Union, including a long-term perspective, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said Tuesday,...
www.dailysabah.com
Seems like Erdoğan has switched his position on EU relations, perhaps this is a final push to accession into the EU as a member state. Although, previous attempts to join have been unsuccessful given the 2016 crisis and the fact that any member state, most notably Cyprus, Greece and France, can veto any Turkish proposal.
After all, one of Erdogan's goals for the 2023 vision included EU membership: "First, Turkey aims to achieve all EU membership conditions and become an influential EU member state by 2023. Second, it will continue to strive for regional integration, in the form of security and economic cooperation. Third, it will seek to play an influential role in regional conflict resolution. Fourth, it will vigorously participate in all global arenas. Fifth, it will play a determining role in international organizations and become one of the top 10 largest economies in the world. To achieve them, Turkey must make progress in all directions and in every field, take an interest in every issue related to global stability, and contribute accordingly".
However, any such consideration for Turkish membership will include pre-exisiting demands including the East Med Gas dispute and The Cypriot Problem - both topics underpinned my nationalist ideals.
(Effect upon the EU)