CHP leader visits Brussels to promote Türkiye’s EU accession

BRUSSELS

Main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) Chair Özgür Özel has underscored the importance of Türkiye’s membership to the European Union during his visit to Brussels on March 5.

“Our struggle overlaps with the (vision of) the European Union. We, as the CHP, believe in democracy, rule of law and stability,” Özel said in his address to the Socialists and Democrats group of the European Parliament.

Özel is currently serving as the vice president of the Socialist International. Accompanied by a delegation, Özel first held a meeting with European Parliament’s Türkiye rapporteur Nacho Sanchez Amor.

He also met the foreign affairs committee head of the European Parliament David McAllister and the leaders of other political groups under the parliament roof. He was also scheduled to meet Türkiye’s permanent representative to the EU, Ambassador Faruk Kaymakçı.

The main pillar of the principle of rule of law is democratic culture and Türkiye’s democratic culture is more advanced than some of the EU members, Özel said in his address at the parliament.

“You closely follow the unlawfulness and judicial harassments in Türkiye. We are obviously opposing to these,” he stated, recalling ongoing prosecutions against the elected mayors of the CHP and other oppositional parties.

Recalling that the CHP is one of the largest social democrat parties in Europe and has become the first party in the local elections in March 2024 local polls, Özel said, underlining that the party has engaged in a big struggle for democracy and human rights.

“Mutual mistakes committed by Türkiye and the EU have decreased the popular support to the membership in Türkiye to around 25 percent,” he suggested, but recalling that it recently increased to 66 percent in line with the efforts exerted by the CHP.

“But the EU should not dilute its engagement with Türkiye to merely migration,” he said, drawing attention to the fact that recent changes in the global order oblige a closer and strategic approach to Ankara-Brussels ties, including defense and security.