Turkey says EU comments on its rights record, judiciary are 'prejudiced, unfair'

Ankara rejected on Wednesday what it called the "prejudiced and unfair" stance of the European Union towards fundamental rights and the judiciary in Turkey, and regarding Cyprus, contained in the bloc's report on EU membership candidates.



In its annual enlargement policy report, the European Commission said that while the EU had advanced ties with Turkey in areas of mutual interest, legal action by Turkish authorities against elected officials, opposition figures and civil society had raised concerns about Ankara's "adherence to core democratic

principles".



"The gap between Türkiye's declared objective of joining the EU and its backsliding on the fundamental political criteria for EU accession has widened further. The underlying factors that led to the standstill in the accession negotiations in 2018 remain unaddressed," it said.



Turkey has been an official candidate to join the EU since 1999, but its accession has long been frozen over issues ranging from its human rights record to democratic backsliding, which Ankara denies.