Austria calls for termination of Turkey’s “EU Membership Negotiations”

Austrian Prime Minister Karl Nehammer argued that Turkey’s frozen negotiation process with the European Union (EU) should come to an end. According to int’l media, Nehammer said in an interview with a German newspaper on Monday, “We support the continuation of rapprochement between Ankara and Brussels. However, Turkey’s full membership in the EU is inconceivable for us.”

The Austrian leader expressed the view that a new partnership should be established between Turkey and the EU, emphasizing that this partnership should be based on mutual trust and cooperation in economic and political matters.

Nehammer further stated, “It is important for us to be honest with each other. Part of this is the formal termination of the membership negotiations that have been frozen for years and the development of a new concept to enhance cooperation between the two neighbors.”

Last week, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan called for the acceleration of Turkey’s EU membership process. During his meeting with Oliver Varhelyi, the European Commissioner for Neighborhood and Enlargement, in Ankara on Wednesday, Fidan stated that the EU should be bolder in improving bilateral relations.

Turkey officially applied for EU membership in 1999. Negotiations that began in December 2005 were suspended due to concerns over the negative trends in the rule of law and human rights in Turkey.