EU: Türkiye’s path to EU membership is still very far

The EU decision is clear: Türkiye cannot currently join the European Union, and there are no preconditions for reviving efforts that have been frozen since 2018, despite the bloc’s geopolitical and strategic importance to Ankara.

This is the conclusion reached by the European Parliament’s report after assessing Türkiye’s membership bid.

The decision to reject Türkiye’s membership was approved on Wednesday in Strasbourg by a majority of 367 votes in favor, 74 against, and 188 abstentions.

“The accession process is frozen… There is no progress,” said Nacho Sánchez Amor, a Spanish member of the European Parliament and author of the report on Türkiye.

The legislature condemned the arrest of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, the crackdown on anti-government protests, and human rights violations, viewing them as part of a crackdown on freedoms.

In 2024, Türkiye ranked 158th out of 180 countries in the Reporters Without Borders World Press Freedom Index, placing it very close to being among the 20 worst countries in the world on this score.

Nevertheless, Ankara remains a strategic partner of Brussels, an active member within NATO, and an important player in Ukraine, the Black Sea, and the Middle East.

During the debate in the European Parliament, Marta Kos, Commissioner for Enlargement, stressed the need to strengthen cooperation with Ankara in areas of shared strategic interest, such as climate, energy security, and trade.

She revealed the positive results of this partnership, saying, “The 2016 EU-Türkiye Declaration on Migration continues to yield results.

The number of irregular arrivals from Türkiye to the EU has decreased by 33% this year compared to the same period last year.

Meanwhile, European Parliamentarians condemned President Erdoğan’s recent visit to the occupied areas of the Republic of Cyprus and the Republic of Northern Cyprus, a state recognized only by Ankara, and the island divided since the Turkish invasion in 1974.

In contrast, parliamentarian Nacho Sánchez Amor called for keeping Türkiye’s EU accession process open, saying, “We need to distinguish between the country and its current leaders. It’s true that under the AKP regime, it’s impossible to move forward because there is no political will to advance democratic values”.

He continued, “But there is a dynamic civil society that is asking us and urging us not to close the process… It wants to keep hope alive that perhaps in the future, with different leaders and in a different environment, this could be an opportunity for Türkiye to engage with the European Union on the basis of membership”.

The bloc requires that a country meet the Copenhagen criteria for membership, such as respect for the rule of law, democratic institutions, protection of minorities, and a viable market economy.

By 2024, Türkiye’s compliance with these conditions had clearly fallen to 5%, according to a Commission report.