Turkey: Erdogan continues his calls with his foot to the European Union

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara on January 12, 2021. AP

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The Turkish president said he was ready on Tuesday to "put back on track" relations between his country and the European bloc, crossed by strong tensions on many issues, including searches for hydrocarbons in the eastern Mediterranean. 

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With our correspondent in Istanbul,

Anne Andlauer

For about two months, Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been multiplying gestures of appeasement and cordial statements with regard to the European Union.

At the end of November, he asserted that his country's place "

 is in Europe

 ".

In December, he wanted to open a "

 new page

" in Turkish-European relations.

This time, the Turkish president said he was ready to "

 put back on track 

" these relations undermined by Ankara's insistence

on looking for hydrocarbons

in maritime areas claimed by Greece and Cyprus.

Erdogan fears a hardening of Western positions

As a sign of goodwill, Turkey has suspended its explorations in the eastern Mediterranean, invited Greece to resume negotiations in Istanbul on January 25, and announced that it wants to normalize its ties with France, which have been particularly strained since last summer. .

Recep Tayyip Erdogan's about-face reflects above all the pressures he has been facing in recent months.

Turkey's struggling economy needs to regain the confidence of foreign investors, as the threat of new EU sanctions looms large.

Above all, European countries have said they want to coordinate their actions towards Turkey with

the future US President Joe Biden

.

Fearing a hardening of Western positions, Recep Tayyip Erdogan therefore tries to calm things down.

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  • Turkey

  • Recep Tayyip Erdogan

  • European Union