Erdoğan losing power base, EU should communicate with Turkish opposition
Germany aims to keep a communication channel open
with Turkey as its strengthening political opposition advocate good relations
with the European Union, German social democrat MEP Udo Bullmann said.
“We should not deal with Turkey as an autocratic
monolith, so keep the flexibility to transform and bring Turkey back into the
family of peaceful nations,” the EU lawmaker told Belgium-based news website
EURACTIV in an interview published on Monday.
“We shouldn’t forget that the power base of (Turkish
President Recep Tayyip) Erdoğan is shrinking … look at the results of
the last municipal elections: the guy is sweating, the guy is afraid of losing
his definition power of internal and external politics within Turkey.”
Erdoğan and his
governing Justice and Development Party (AKP) suffered a major defeat in local
elections in 2019, losing Turkey’s two largest cities, Istanbul and the capital
Ankara, to the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP).
The EU should send a clear message to Erdoğan
that his aggressive behaviour cannot be tolerated any longer at an upcoming
leaders’ summit on Dec. 10-11, Bullmann said.
EU leaders are expected to discuss possible
sanctions against Turkey over its maritime activities in waters contested by EU
member-states Greece and Cyprus in the eastern Mediterranean.
“If he acts like in the recent past, there have to
be clear words and a clear definition of where the EU stands,” Bullmann said.
A source close to the issue told EURACTIV last week
that Erdoğan would back down at the first
sign of EU unity from his aggressive stance towards Europe.
