BERLIN (Sputnik) — Germany is opposed to putting the negotiations on Turkey's potential membership of the European Union on hold, German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel said on Friday.
"We believe that halting the negotiations is a completely wrong reaction," Gabriel said ahead of the informal meeting of the EU member states’ foreign ministers in Malta.
The association agreement between Turkey and the then European Community was signed in 1963, which was then followed by Turkey's submission of a membership application in 1987. Talks on Ankara's membership of the European Union began in 2005 but have been repeatedly suspended due to various obstacles, including the failed July 2016 coup attempt.
The referendum on expansion of the president’s powers took place in Turkey on April 16, with over 51 percent of voters supporting the proposed amendments that would transition the government from a parliamentary to presidential system. The opposition had demanded that the referendum results be canceled, but the Supreme Electoral Council (SEC) rejected the appeal and approved the final results of the vote.
