MOSCOW, 21 Jul. EU representatives' statements about the possibility of Turkey's admission are a «clear answer» to the country's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Senator Alexei Pushkov expressed this opinion.
As EU Foreign Service spokesman Peter Stano said earlier, Turkey will not become an EU member in 2024. At the same time, he added that the bloc is not yet ready to provide Ankara with a visa-free regime.
«The European Union announced that Turkey will not become a member of the EU in 2024. I believe, and not only in 2024. It will not even receive a visa-free regime — it does not meet the criteria. There can be no two opinions: this is a clear answer not so much to Turkey, but primarily to Erdogan,» Pushkov wrote in his Telegram channel.
In his opinion, this response contains a «message» about how the Turkish leader is treated in the European Union.
«It can be predicted with confidence that Turkey's path to the EU is blocked during Erdogan's presidency. And after him, with a high degree of probability, too. All the more reason for Ankara to appreciate the opportunities that a multi-vector foreign policy gives it. Being in the EU, Turkey will be deprived of the opportunity to have its own face on the world stage,» the senator concluded.
Earlier, Erdogan said that Sweden's accession to NATO will be possible after Turkey is admitted to the EU. After this statement, on the same day, NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg said that Erdogan had agreed «as soon as possible» to send papers to ratify Sweden's application for NATO membership to the Turkish parliament. Press Secretary of the President of Russia Dmitry Peskov said that they do not want to see Turkey in Europe, in Ankara they should not wear rose-colored glasses on this matter.