MESOP NEWS EXCLUSIV : A FRIENDLY INVIATION TO ERDOGAN – By Council of the EU
PRESS EN – PRESS RELEASE – 53/18 – 07/02/2018
Invitation letter from Presidents Tusk and Juncker to President Erdoğan to a EU-Turkey leaders’ meeting
At our Leaders’ meeting on 25 May 2017, we agreed to structure an open dialogue, at all levels, through a process of engagement in areas of common interest.
Intensified exchanges covering the broad spectrum of EU-Turkey relations have taken place since then, including high-level dialogues on transport, economic cooperation, counter-terrorism and foreign policy. Our next exchange on energy is scheduled to take place at the end of February.
We embarked on this process on the understanding that it was to be nurtured by concrete steps by Turkey on the domestic front as well as in relations with EU Member States. Regarding the latter aspect, we welcome your recent efforts to reach out.
Against this background, and with your agreement, we would like to propose to hold another meeting at Leaders’ level. Prime
Minister Borissov, as the leader of the country holding the rotating Presidency of the Council of the European Union, has kindly agreed to host this meeting as a working dinner, on 26 March, in Varna, Bulgaria.
This will be a good opportunity to jointly assess matters of mutual interest and recent developments in your country, including in the area of rule of law and fundamental freedoms, which remain fundamental to the fabric of and prospects for EU-Turkey relations, as well as regional and international issues.
This occasion will also serve to share our views on how to move our relationship forward, on the basis of mutual respect and common interests.
Letter from Presidents Tusk and Juncker to President Erdoğan
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