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Türkiye’s Foreign Ministry on Wednesday rejected the European Commission’s 2026 report on the country, saying the document once again shows the European Union’s “prejudiced” and unfair stance toward Ankara, while welcoming several of its findings on the economy and security.
In a statement dated Nov. 4 and numbered 212, the ministry said the report, prepared as part of the Commission’s 2026 Enlargement Package, was far from objective.
It said it rejected “baseless” allegations in the report, especially those on political criteria, the judiciary and fundamental rights.
The ministry attributed them to double standards among some EU officials and a mindset that it said has lost its consistency and persuasiveness.
The ministry said that, as in recent years, the report defends what it called maximalist theses of Greece and the Greek Cypriot side that are inconsistent with international law and detached from reality.
At the same time, it said, the legitimate rights and interests of Türkiye and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus were again overlooked.
Ankara said it was repeating its view that the EU cannot contribute to efforts to resolve the Cyprus issue as long as it unconditionally backs the Greek Cypriot side’s stance, which the ministry described as intransigent.
Cyprus has been divided since 1974, and the Turkish Cypriot state, declared in 1983, is recognized only by Türkiye. The Greek Cypriot administration in the south is an EU member.
The ministry also dismissed the report’s assessments on the Eastern Mediterranean, saying they run counter to international law and the principle of fairness.
It said the report’s references to the memorandum of understanding signed between Türkiye and Libya have no legal effect. The agreement, signed in 2019, concerns maritime jurisdiction areas and has been contested by Greece and the Greek Cypriot side.
The statement was not wholly critical. The ministry said it considered important the report’s recognition of Türkiye’s progress in economic and monetary policy, as well as its findings on the country’s functioning market economy and its capacity to cope with competitive pressure within the Union.
Ankara also pointed to the report’s references to the resilience of Türkiye’s connectivity, supply and value chains, and said it viewed positively the passages on the country’s role in defense and security.
Citing the report’s own data on economic and trade relations, the ministry reiterated what it called Türkiye’s legitimate expectation that the customs union with the EU be modernized. The customs union has governed most trade in industrial goods between the two sides since the 1990s.
The ministry said Türkiye-EU relations should be built on common gains and a long-term vision rather than on “narrow political calculations” and unilateral approaches.
It said Türkiye is ready to advance ties under partnership law and the principle of good faith, based on mutual trust, respect and fairness.
Türkiye has been an EU candidate country since 1999, and accession talks formally opened in 2005.
They have been effectively at a standstill for years, with the Commission’s annual enlargement reports serving as a regular point of friction.
Ankara said it expects the EU to turn the dialogue that has increased in recent months into concrete decisions that strengthen Türkiye’s membership perspective, and to show “the strategic will” that the countries’ shared future requires.
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