Turkey “further away from EU membership than ever”: German Foreign Ministry

Turkey has never been less likely to join the European Union than now and the bloc should seek a special relationship with Britain, German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel said as relations between Ankara and Berlin hit a low point, reports Reuters.

“Today Turkey is definitely further away from becoming a member of the European Union than ever before,” Gabriel said in an interview with news magazine Der Spiegel published on Saturday.

Before taking power in Germany in 2005, Chancellor Angela Merkel was an outspoken opponent of Turkey’s membership and called for a “privileged partnership”.

Gabriel once thought that would make Turks feel like second-class Europeans but said his opinion had changed since Britain’s decision to leave the EU.

“Today the situation is totally different due to Brexit. We’d be well advised to bring about a ‘special relationship’ with Great Britain after its exit from the EU,” Gabriel said.

“That will be an important learning process for the EU and perhaps some of it can serve as a blueprint for other countries in the long term,” Gabriel said.

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker told Bild am Sonntag newspaper Turkish accession to the EU “will not fail due to a lack of willingness on the part of EU members but rather due to Turkey not wanting to introduce European standards”.

Juncker added that if Turkey were to re-introduce the death penalty, that would result in accession talks ending.