Turkey Vows To Review Ties With EU After Criticism

Turkey's Foreign Ministry said Monday it would re-examine its ties with the European Union in "certain areas" after the EU took steps to impose curbs on Ankara over Cyprus drilling and the Syria offensive

ANKARA (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 14th October, 2019) Turkey's Foreign Ministry said Monday it would re-examine its ties with the European Union in "certain areas" after the EU took steps to impose curbs on Ankara over Cyprus drilling and the Syria offensive.

A council of EU foreign ministers agreed that restrictive measures should be imposed on Turks who play a role in the drilling for hydrocarbons in the Eastern Mediterranean after Cyprus complained. Limits on arms exports to Turkey will also be put in place after its troops moved into northern Syria last week.

"We fully reject and condemn the agreements made at the Council of the EU in Luxembourg.

.. The EU's biased attitude toward Turkey is unacceptable and incompatible with international laws," the statement read.

Turkey accused the European Union of ignoring the interests of Turkish Cypriots in the island's north and warned that "this illegal and biased decision forces us to revisit our cooperation with the EU in certain areas."

Turkey and the EU have been at odds over the drilling near Cyprus, an ethically divided island that is an EU member. Tensions between Ankara and Brussels heightened after Turkey launched an offensive to push Kurdish militias away from its border with Syria.