EU lawmakers dampen Turkey’s hopes of reopening accession talks

ISTANBUL (AP) — European lawmakers say that Turkey needs to make a “drastic change of course” to get EU accession talks back on track. This comes a week after the Turkish president linked the process to accepting Sweden into NATO. The European Parliament’s foreign affairs committee said on Tuesday that Ankara’s bid to join the bloc “cannot resume under the current circumstances.” President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has committed to put Sweden’s accession before Turkey’s parliament for ratification but tied the move to Turkey joining the EU. Nacho Sanchez Amor, the European Parliament’s Turkey rapporteur, said EU negotiations could resume “when Turkish authorities show real interest in stopping the continuous backsliding in fundamental freedoms and rule of law.”