The reasons which led the EU to decide to open accession negotiations with Turkey are unchanged: the EU needs a stable, democratic and prosperous Turkey, in peace with its neighbours, which takes over the EU values, policies and standards. The start of the negotiations will give a strong push for those in Turkey, who want to reform the country to meet the European values of rule of law and human rights; they are also a way for the EU to have leverage on the direction of these reforms. The conditions set in the December European Council conclusions are met: First, the six pieces of legislation, including the penal code, identified by the Commission in last year’s recommendation entered into force on 1 June. Second, Turkey signed Additional Protocol to Ankara Agreement on 29 July.
İmtiyaz Sahibi
