Changes from report parliamentary committee draft to plenary report

EXPLANATORY STATEMENT

This is the second report in this legislature on the progress of Türkiye as a candidate country to the EU. The report evaluates the state of play and latest developments with regard to Türkiye’s accession progress and also the broader relations between the EU and the country. Accession negotiations with Türkiye have remained at a standstill since 2018, in line with the European Council Conclusions. The report argues that, despite the Turkish Government’s recent statements on its commitment to the EU membership, the gap between Türkiye and the EU’s values and normative framework – which are at the core of the accession process – has remained unaddressed during the last period with persisting laws and measures aimed at curtailing the rule of law and fundamental rights. The report calls once again to put an end to the constant attacks on the rights of members of the opposition, denouncing in particular the situation of the CHP and its presidential candidate Ekrem İmamoğlu, human rights defenders, lawyers, journalists, artists, academics and civil society activists, among others. The report is highly critical with the silence of other EU institutions and many EU Member States, in the face of the erosion of the rule of law in Türkiye, urging them to be more vocal in this regard. As a conclusion, given the lack of improvements by the Turkish authorities with regard to the democratic backsliding in the country, the report expresses that the Parliament has no other option but to reiterate that Türkiye’s EU accession process cannot be resumed in the current circumstances. The text urges the Turkish Government and the European Union’s institutions and Member States to keep working, beyond the currently frozen accession process, towards a closer, more dynamic and strategic partnership.