(Bloomberg) -- Turkey’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan is set to attend informal talks with European Union counterparts on Aug. 29 for the first time in five years as the bloc works to improve ties with the country.
Turkey welcomed the invitation to a so-called Gymnich meeting in Brussels as a sign of a “search for dialog” and hopes it will lead to the “amendment” of the EU’s 2019 punitive measures over Ankara’s energy exploration in the Eastern Mediterranean, the state-run Anadolu Agency cited Foreign Ministry Spokesman Oncu Keceli as saying.
Those measures, which saw Brussels side with member states Greece and Cyprus, included the suspension of some membership talks with Turkey, hampering trade and blocking some defense deals including the sale of Eurofighter warplanes.
“This invitation is a sign that the EU understands the necessity of developing relations between Turkey in the face of regional and global challenges,” Keceli said.
The meeting follows a thaw between Turkey and Greece, and comes after Ankara stepped up its search for multilateral alliances including with BRICS alongside Russia and China, citing frustration over a lack of progress in membership talks with Brussels.
Turkish Frustration With EU Talks Is Prompting Outreach to BRICS
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