Germany’s Merkel says will push to end Turkey’s EU membership talks

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region (Kurdistan 24) – German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Sunday, ahead of a German federal election, said she would push to end talks of Turkey’s accession to the European Union. 

“The fact is clear that Turkey should not become a member of the EU,” Merkel said during a debate with her Social Democrat (SPD) challenger Martin Schulz.

“I’ll speak to my [EU] colleagues to see if we can reach a joint position on this so that we can end these accession talks,” the Chancellor added.

The comments aggravated Turkish officials, including President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s spokesperson who accused the Germans of “practicing the politics of populism and exclusion.”

The two NATO allies have experienced strained relations since Erdogan’s crackdown on opposition in the aftermath of a failed military coup attempt in July 2016.

Ties between Berlin and Ankara were worsened when Turkish officials denied German lawmakers the right to visit troops at an air base in Turkey, prompting Germany to transfer their forces to Jordan.

Schulz also expressed his desire to end EU membership talks with Turkey if he is elected Chancellor.

“If I become German chancellor, if the people of this country give me a mandate, then I will propose to the European Council that we end the membership talks with Turkey,” he said.

“Whether we can win over all the countries for this I don’t know,” Schulz stated, adding he “will fight for this.”

Merkel was initially cautious over the move, citing the safety of German citizens imprisoned in Turkey.

The German Chancellor’s Christian Democratic Union (CDU), a conservative party, has opposed Ankara’s membership in the EU for a long time.

The decision to begin membership talks between Turkey and the EU was made before Merkel became Chancellor in 2005.

At the time, she said she would respect the “open-ended” discussions.

Editing by Ava Homa