Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu harshly criticized the European Union on Thursday, December 1, for its decision not to invite Turkey for talks on Syria, saying the 27-nation bloc bowed to pressure from a “capricious” small country.
EU heavyweight France announced on Monday that it asked its EU partners to invite non-member Turkey to a foreign ministerial meeting in Brussels on Syria on Thursday, apparently acknowledging Turkey’s active involvement in the formation of a united stance against the Syrian regime at global level. But the Turkish participation was blocked when Greek Cyprus raised objections.
“The EU bowed to the whim of a small country. I don’t know if I might be able to join if I am invited to a new meeting on Syria because I have a busy schedule,” Davutoğlu told journalists accompanying him on a visit to Germany.
“In addition to France, Germany and the United Kingdom also supported the Turkish participation in the meeting,” Davutoğlu said.
The Foreign Minister also recounted that he had a phone conversation with his German counterpart, Guido Westerwelle, who, he said, sounded “apologetically” over the diplomatic setback. Davutoğlu told the German minister that Turkey had not requested to attend the meeting on Syria and that it was ready to join because the three main countries of the EU had asked for its participation, Today’s Zaman reported.
The EU ministers agreed in their talks in Brussels to impose new sanctions on Syrian individuals and businesses in the hope of pressuring the Syrian regime to halt its deadly crackdown on anti-government protests. The new sanctions target 12 people and 11 companies, and add to the list of those previously sanctioned by the EU.
