High representatives for foreign affairs of the European Union have announced that Turkish people stick to democracy with elections although democracy has been restricted at elections in the country.
Federica Mogherini, the high representative of the EU for foreign affairs and security policy, and Johannes Hahn, the European commissioner for enlargement negotiations, have made a joint statement following Turkey’s double elections on June 24.
The EU officials have referred to the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), saying that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his party had an “undue advantage” for propaganda in the media. “The authorities of the state of emergency restricted the right to rally and the freedom of speech in the media,” they have noted.
Mogherini and Hahn have promised to work with Erdoğan and the Turkish parliament to talk on various joint problems.
The EU speaker Margaritis Schinas has told the reporters that they hope President Erdoğan will continue to be part of the EU in important issues such as migration, security, regional stability and anti-terrorism.
Kati Piri, the European Parliament’s rapporteur on Turkey, has shared a Twitter post regarding the Turkish polls, saying that Turkey did not witness a fair electoral atmosphere. “The last obstacle for the introduction of a highly undemocratic presidential system has now been removed,” she has said.
Piri has argued that Turkey’s opposition parties managed to organize themselves and held rallies attended by millions of people despite the unscheduled early elections.
Meanwhile, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas has called on President Erdoğan to lift the state of emergency which was declared following the failed coup in July 2016. Maas has stated that Erdoğan’s move to lift the state of emergency will contribute to the improvement of the EU-Turkey relations as well as the Germany-Turkey relations.
Turkish President Erdoğan secured 52,5 per cent of votes in the first round of the presidential voting while his Justice and Development Party and its ally ultra-right ally Nationalist Movement Party won 53,6 percent of votes in the parliamentary polls.
