Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday asked the European Union to relaunch talks for Ankara to eventually become an EU member, on the eve of a summit focused on Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
"We expect the EU to open quickly the chapters of the membership negotiations and to start negotiations on a customs union without yielding to cynical calculations," Erdogan said after talks with visiting Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte.
The Turkish president's comments come as Ankara has emerged as a pivotal player in the war in Ukraine, reviving its place in institutions like Nato after years of tensions with western states.
Last month Turkey invoked the 1936 Montreux Convention to close the Bosporus straight to foreign battleships. It has also sold armed drones to Ukraine and is attempting to mediate an end to the fighting between Kyiv and Moscow.
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Turkey's Erdogan asks EU to relaunch membership negotiations | Middle East Eye