European Parliament votes to suspend the negotiations with Turkey

European Parliament voted for the suspension of EU membership talks with Turkey and the resolution was passed with 479 votes in favor, 37 against and 107 abstentions.

Alexander Graf Lambsdorff, the Vice-President of the European Parliament, stated that this vote is an important message.

The resolution is not legally binding.

The reports that were issued by Council of Europe and European Parliament about Turkey and European Convention on Human Rights are pointed out in the resolution and given the antidemocratic practices in Turkey, a temporary suspension was demanded.

It is also emphasized that EU and European Parliament condemned the coup attempt on July 15 and “recognized the legitimate responsibility of the Turkish authorities to prosecute those responsible and involved in this attempt.”

It is stated that the measures under the state of emergency are disproportionate and breach the basic rights and freedoms protected by the Turkish Constitution. The arrest of HDP MPs and 150 journalists are also pointed out in the resolution.

In the joint motion, the debate on death penalty is also mentioned and it is stated that “the unequivocal rejection of the death penalty is an essential element of the Union acquis.” It is also stated that Turkey “has not fulfilled 7 out of 72 benchmarks of the visa liberalization road map.”

European Parliament does not have the authority to end or suspend the membership talks. However, this decision is a political message to Council of the European Union and the governments of member states.

It is expected that the issue of membership talks with Turkey will be discussed in EU leaders' summit on December.