Turkey Ready to Provide 60 Thousand Soldiers to the EU
In case of Turkey's accession to the EU, Turkey could provide the EU an army of 60 thousand people, Volkan Bozkır, Turkish Minister for EU Affairs declared adding: "Due to the fact that the EU still has not created an army, it still positions itself as a soft power. Without an army it is not possible to become a superpower. In case Turkey joins the EU, it would ensure the creation of its army of 60 thousand people," Ria Novosti reports.
On Sunday the German Welt am Sonntag published the interview of the the European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, who declared about the need to create a joint European army - as a tool to promote the interests of Europe. At the same, the statement of the Turkish Minister for EU Affairs was not something new. Back in October 2014 Volkan Bozkır during his visit to Berlin, said that "if Turkey becomes a member of the EU, the EU will be able to create an army of 60,000 soldiers." "The EU has no effectiveness while intervening in this or that question, because it does not have its military structure," - the Turkish Minister said.
Ankara submitted the application for the EU membership in 1987. Accession negotiations started in 2005. Since then, 14 of the 35 chapters of the reforms (reforms that Ankara should fulfill in order to meet the requirements for EU membership standards) have been opened by Turkey. The remaining 17 chapters remain locked.
The Turkish side claims that "Turkey meets the criteria of the EU's key points that will have a strategic impact on the future of the EU. According to it, these points are - strong economy, young and hardworking population, strategic position of the energy supply routes in the region where 70% of the world oil and gas resources are, and finally, its armed forces." However, the EU in its annual report on Turkey's progress noted that there is interference in the judicial system of the country and prohibitions on various media by the Turkish Government, also the Kurdish unresolved question which make it impossible for the EU to become an EU member country.
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