Kremlin Advises Turkey to 'Take Off the Rose-Colored Glasses'

Ankara should not wear rose-colored glasses, as Europeans do not wish to see Turkey in Europe, stated Dmitry Peskov, the press secretary of the Russian president. According to TASS, this was his response to a question regarding whether the Kremlin believes Turkey has started to lean towards a pro-European course and focus on the West.

“Turkey may orient itself towards the West, and we know that there have been periods of intense orientation towards the West in the history of the Republic of Turkey, as well as less intense periods... To call things by their names, no one wants to see Turkey in Europe, I mean Europeans. Our Turkish partners probably should not wear rose-colored glasses,” Peskov said.

It is noteworthy that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, speaking about advancing Sweden's NATO membership application, linked the issue of Stockholm's accession to the dialogue on Turkey's membership in the European Union. “First, open the way for Turkey to join the EU, and then we will open the way for Sweden to join NATO, as we did with Finland. Turkey has been waiting at the EU's door for 50 years,” Erdoğan stated.

Meanwhile, it has been announced today that Sweden will support Turkey's EU membership process, including efforts to liberalize the visa regime for Turkish citizens and restore the Customs Union between Ankara and Brussels. This was announced by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg following a trilateral meeting between Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson in Vilnius.