EU Summit Issues Turkey Statement: Emphasizes Strategic Interests and Cyprus

The statement emphasized that "the EU has a strategic interest in developing a cooperation-based and mutually beneficial relationship with Turkey for a stable and secure environment in the Eastern Mediterranean." It also called for the advancement of efforts related to the recommendations outlined in the joint report presented by EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell and the European Commission in November 2023, stressing the need for these efforts to be pursued gradually, proportionally, and reversibly, and, when necessary, subject to additional guidance from the EU Council through the Committee of Permanent Representatives (COREPER).

Furthermore, the statement underscored the significance of Turkey's constructive engagement, suggesting that Turkey's involvement would be beneficial in advancing various areas of cooperation outlined in the report.

CYPRUS EMPHASIS

The statement also highlighted the importance the EU places on the resumption and progress of Cyprus negotiations, which could also enhance EU-Turkey cooperation. It reiterated the EU's commitment to the UN-facilitated process for resolving the issue and expressed readiness to actively support all stages of the process using all appropriate tools available.

During the summit's session on external relations, discussions on Turkey included the consideration of proposals outlined in the report prepared by Borrell and the European Commission in November 2023.

The report proposed measures such as the reactivation of the EU-Turkey High-Level Dialogues on Economy, Energy, and Transport, the resumption of Ministerial-Level Joint Committee and High-Level Political Dialogue meetings, and the increase in the number of sectoral High-Level dialogues on topics including climate, health, migration and security, agriculture, research, and innovation, conditioned upon Turkey's continued avoidance of all illegal drilling activities in the Eastern Mediterranean and other actions that undermine sovereignty and sovereign rights, as suspended since 2019.