The European Commission appears to be leaving the door open to EU membership talks with Turkey.<br /><br /> Red flags were raised following last month’s coup attempt, subsequent mass arrests and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s threat of reintroducing capital punishment.<br /><br /> Head of the EC Jean-Claude Juncker told German broadcaster ARD that Turkey wasn’t currently in a fit state to become a member of the bloc, but added:<br />“I don’t think it would be helpful if we were to unilaterally tell Turkey that the negotiations are over.”<br /><br /> His statement followed Austrian Chancellor Christian Kern’s claim that the negotiations are “diplomatic fiction.” Top officials in Vienna have called for a halt to discussions between the European Union and Turkey.<br /><br /> Germany, too, has expressed concern about whether or not there is a strong enough basis for talks, but stopped short of calling for a freeze in dialogue.<br /><br /> “If all these things are making their way back in Turkey – if the death penalty comes into force again – then the question on EU membership will answer itself, because it is in our common understanding that member states joining the EU have abolished it,” said Germany’s Foreign Minister, Frank-Walter Steinmeier.<br /><br /> He warned against hastily stopping discussions with Ankara, claiming this would wipe out any leverage Europe has concerning the thousands of people detained in Turkey.<br /><br /> Juncker said such a decision would need the support of all EU member states, adding that he doesn’t “see this willingness [...] at this point in time.”<br />
