Why The EU Should Terminate Turkey's Accession Process

It is apparent that the EU stands in an extremely troubled position as to how to treat Turkish President Erdoğan and the oppressive regime he is busy constructing. The final nail in the coffin of democracy was perhaps the result of the referendum in April 16 this year, when a majority of Turkish voters welcomed such constitutional changes that it is now practically impossible to remove Erdoğan from power by democratic means. 

''Authoritarian leaders do not simply come and go. And when they do go, they rarely go quietly. The test of an autocrat like Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan isn't how he came to power, but how he treats critics, journalists, minorities, and whether his rule can go unchecked by constitutional limits," wrote Steven Blockmans, a senior fellow with the Center for European Policy Studies.

The EU should have already concluded that Turkey is in breach of the criteria for membership. It's not hard to see that Erdoğan has crossed multiple red lines. Rather than try to avoid aggravating an autocrat, the EU should stand behind its core values, terminate Turkey's accession process and reset its bilateral relationship on a more credible and strategic footing. At the same time, it should press Turkey on human rights and fund work with organizations in and outside the country to keep the flame of democracy alive.

Blockmans argues that the should EU stop what he calls 'half-hearted talk'' of pulling the plug on pre-accession funding and suggests tough measures to Erdoğan. He counts three reasons for the hard line:

• After 12 years of trying, accession negotiations have produced the opposite of what was intended.
• If the EU is seen to get tough with the regime while supporting any remaining political opposition, it will prove itself to be a more effective antidote to the authoritarian rule of President Erdoğan.
• Emancipation from the reprehensible migration deal with Turkey would help the EU to uphold its core values in the spirit of principled pragmatism.