German FM Believes Ceasing Talks With Turkey on EU Entry Impractical

German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said that negotiations with Turkey on its accession to the European Union should be continued.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Halting negotiations with Turkey on its accession to the European Union would be inexpedient at the moment, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said Monday.

"I would not give signal to stop negotiations now," Steinmeier said at a briefing in Brussels.

The statement came ahead of tomorrow's meeting of the Council of the European Union where several issues including membership talks with Turkey will be discussed.

Relations between Ankara and Brussels cooled down after the European parliament condemned actions of the Turkish government in the wake of the attempted military coup and voted for the suspension of talks on the entry of Turkey in late November. The decision triggered harsh criticism from Ankara.

The Association agreement between Turkey and the European Union was signed in 1963. Turkey filed application to join the bloc in 1987, and the talks between the two parties started in 2005.