MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Earlier in the day, the European Parliament suspended its work on granting Turkish citizens visa-free travel to the European Union, citing Ankara’s lack of progress in meeting all 72 criteria necessary for such a move. The five outstanding criteria include a revision of Turkey’s national anti-terrorism laws.
"One of the 72 criteria that Turkey must fulfill for the visa exemption agreement is to ensure its anti-terrorism laws’ compliance with the EU standards. And this step will mean the democratization of Turkey’s legal framework. But with the current understanding it’s not possible for the Turkish government to implement this criterion," Saruhan Oluc said.
"With Davutoglu’s forced resignation Erdogan has totally taken control over the government and turned prime minister into an impotent secretary. This means by completely eliminating the separation of powers between legislative-executive-judiciary, Erdogan is approaching a step further to a ‘Turkish-style presidential' system, to a sultanate and increasing his power," the HDP vice co-chair said.
Ankara and Brussels were due to hold a high-level discussion on visa liberalization for Turkish citizens visiting the Schengen area on May 13, but on Tuesday the meeting was postponed.
