In a strong response, accompanied by the submission of a written question to the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs, Kaya Kallas, Nikolas Farantouris, on the occasion of her visit to Ankara and the joint statement issued with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos, and Commissioner for Home Affairs and Migration Magnus Brunner.
The joint statement underscores the “strategic value” of the Turkey-EU partnership for regional security, stability, and resilience.
In his written question to the European Commission, Mr. Farantouris points out that the communiqué makes no mention whatsoever of Ankara’s ongoing provocations against two European Union member states, which are in fact included in the European Parliament’s recent report on Turkey.
The Greek MEP is seeking clarification on whether the High Representative raised the following issues during her meeting with Turkish leaders:
- the challenge to Greek and Cypriot maritime zones;
- the revisionist and expansionist theory of the “Blue Homeland” and efforts to enshrine it in law;
- Turkey’s obstruction of the Greece–Cyprus electricity interconnection, a project of strategic importance for the European Union itself,
- d) the exclusion of and maneuvers to marginalize the Republic of Cyprus in the lead-up to the COP31 World Climate Conference in Antalya in November.
Mr. Farantouris emphasizes that “the credibility of European foreign policy cannot be built on silence in the face of revisionist practices directed against member states.”
As he points out, the European Union is an organization of 27 equal states. Its strength lies in its solidarity and unity. Turkey challenges the sovereign rights of member states, obstructs European projects of common interest, and directly threatens European cohesion. “Since when can a strategic partner threaten member states of the European Union itself?” he pointed out.
Speaking from Brussels this morning, Nikolas Farantouris emphasized: “We will not allow Turkey’s geopolitical position to be used as an excuse to tolerate behavior that violates the fundamental principles upon which the European Union was built. Europe’s credibility is put to the test when strategic cooperation takes precedence over the Union’s own values and interests. We will not allow that to happen.”