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EU-Turkey talks delayed due to Ankaraâ€™s crackdown on protests

26 June 2013 03:18 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. The European Union has decided to defer accession talks with Turkey until later this year over Ankara's violent crackdown on nationwide anti-government protests, APA reports quoting Press TV.

On Tuesday, EU foreign ministers meeting in Luxembourg supported a German proposal to delay the new round of Turkey’s membership negotiations, which had been scheduled to resume on Wednesday, pending an October report by the European Commission on Turkey’s progress in reforms and human rights.

Negotiations on Turkey’s EU bid, which began in 2005, have been stalled since June 2010, six months after Cyprus blocked talks on six chapters of the bid. Last October, a report by the European Commission also raised concerns about democracy and human rights in Turkey.

Germany, Austria and the Netherlands, among other EU member states, blocked the talks to criticize the government of Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan for its handling of the anti-government protests, which began on May 31 after police broke up a sit-in held at Istanbul's Taksim Square to protest against the proposal to demolish Gezi Park.

The protesters say Gezi Park, which is a traditional gathering point for rallies and demonstrations as well as a popular tourist destination, is one of Istanbul's last green public spaces.

Five people, including a police officer, have reportedly died in the clashes and more than 5,000 protesters and 600 police officers have been wounded.

As part of the ongoing crackdown, Turkish police detained at least 20 people in the capital Ankara on Tuesday on suspicion of attacking security forces during the unrest in Istanbul. Police also arrested at least 31 people over the weekend on charges of organizing demonstrations and damaging public property.

"While we have been disturbed by the reaction to the recent peaceful protests in Turkey, I believe that the EU accession process is the most effective tool we have in influencing the reform agenda in Turkey. EU-inspired reforms have facilitated the increasing space for peaceful protest and dissenting voices," said Irish Foreign Minister Eamon Gilmore, who chaired the meeting of the 27-nation bloc.

Gilmore went on to say that the “protests have also shown that Turkey needs further reform,” adding that the resumption of accession negotiations will “allow the EU to continue contributing to shaping the direction of future reform in Turkey."