BRUSSELS (AP) – Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan ramped up his anti-Western rhetoric Tuesday ahead of a meeting between his foreign minister and top European Union officials, saying the era of a submissive Turkey bowing to every Western demand is over.
Turkey has been mired in an escalating diplomatic row with EU powerhouse Germany following the arrests last week of a group of human rights activists, including a German national, over terror-related charges. Earlier, a German-Turkish journalist was arrested for allegedly spying and aiding Kurdish rebels.
“The West wants Turkey to bring about their demands no questions asked… I am sorry to say that Turkey no longer exists,” Erdogan told a meeting of his ruling party’s legislators in Ankara.
Turkey’s Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu and EU Affairs Minister Omer Celik are meeting with EU foreign affairs chief Federica Mogherini in Brussels Tuesday. The talks come as Turkey’s long-standing bid for EU membership remains in the deep freeze and show no signs of thawing.
Human rights activists urged the EU to use the meeting to press Ankara to release rights workers who have been detained as part of Turkey’s crackdown on the opposition in the aftermath of last year’s failed coup.