Turkey has delivered a negative initial response to an invitation for President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to attend an informal European Council meeting in Cyprus this April, President Nikos Christodoulides revealed.
In an interview with the Greek SKAI TV on Tuesday, the President disclosed that despite Nicosia’s efforts to use its current EU Council Presidency to bridge the gap with Ankara, Turkish officials remain resistant to participating in high-level summits hosted on the island.
The diplomatic outreach, which involved intermediaries from several EU member states with close ties to Turkey, sought to avoid a public rejection by gauging Ankara’s interest before a formal invitation was issued.
President Christodoulides confirmed that the offer was flexible, extending not only to Erdogan for the leaders’ summit but also to Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan for the “Gymnich” meeting of foreign ministers, or the Deputy Minister for European Affairs for the General Affairs Council. “The message we have received is that they are not positive,” the President stated, adding that the goal was to “create positive developments” rather than solicit a flat refusal.
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