Türkiye rejects EU report’s political assessments

ANKARA

Türkiye on Nov. 4 rejected the European Commission’s assessments of its political system, judiciary and fundamental rights, accusing the EU of a “biased and unfair” approach.

In a statement on the Commission’s 2026 Enlargement Package, the Foreign Ministry called the allegations “baseless” and accused some EU officials of double standards.

The Commission said legal action against elected officials, opposition figures and civil society had intensified, deepening concerns over democratic standards and judicial independence.

The ministry also accused the EU of backing Greek and Greek Cypriot positions while disregarding the rights and interests of Türkiye and the Turkish Cyprus.

It said the bloc could not contribute to a Cyprus settlement while unconditionally supporting the Greek Cypriot side.

The statement rejected the report’s Eastern Mediterranean assessments as contrary to international law and said its comments on Türkiye’s maritime agreement with Libya carried no legal weight.

The ministry welcomed the report’s findings on Türkiye’s progress in economic and monetary policy, its functioning market economy and its capacity to withstand competitive pressure within the EU.

It also welcomed references to Türkiye’s role in connectivity, supply chain resilience, defense and security.

The report’s economic and trade data reinforced Türkiye’s call to modernize the Customs Union, the ministry said.

Türkiye remained ready to advance relations based on mutual trust, respect and fairness, it added, urging the EU to turn increased dialogue into concrete decisions supporting its membership prospects.