The European Commission has criticized Turkey for excluding Cyprus from preparatory meetings ahead of the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP31), which is set to take place in Antalya in November, describing Ankara’s conduct as “unacceptable”.
According to Politico reports, the Turkish government has excluded Cyprus from several informal preparatory meetings in recent months.
Ankara has been refusing or ignoring requests for bilateral meetings sent by Cyprus, despite Nicosia currently representing all 27 EU governments as it holds the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union.
The head of the European Commission for Climate Action, Wopke Hoekstra, told Politico on Thursday that Turkey’s behavior is unacceptable “and we will not accept it.” He also stated: “Either you cooperate with all 27 countries, or with none of them.”
“If you aim to host an international event, it must be above any national sensitivities you may have,” the European official added.
It is worth noting that Turkey does not maintain diplomatic relations with Cyprus. The Commission also addressed this issue during Thursday’s press briefing.
“We have made it clear that the exclusion of a UN member state from the COP31 preparatory process is not acceptable,” said spokesperson Anna-Kaisa Ikonen. “Turkey has assured us that Cyprus will not be excluded from future COP31 preparatory meetings,” she added.
