National ambassadors to the EU welcomed the detailed account of the visit to Turkey by the office of the President of the European Council at a meeting of the Committee of Permanent Representatives (Coreper) late in the afternoon of Wednesday 14 April. However, they regretted the ‘Sofagate’ diplomatic incident and insisted on “turning the page” and moving on.
In an exchange - considered frank by a diplomatic source - with the office of the President of the European Council, the Member States all regretted the incident (see EUROPE 12698/10), which gave a negative image of European action in the media and, consequently, in European public opinion, overshadowing the convincing results of the diplomatic visit of the two presidents to Turkey.
They stressed the importance of improving inter-institutional coordination on protocol. On the other hand, they have rejected the idea of any treaty change, another source confirms. In any case, they strongly emphasised that such a situation should never be repeated.
In contrast, Member States were much more enthusiastic about the outcome of the visit. Indeed, the new Foreign Affairs Advisor in the Cabinet of the President of the European Council, Simon Mordue, gave a very detailed account of the visit of European Council President Charles Michel and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to Turkey. The presentation was made in great detail and was greatly appreciated by the national delegations, according to sources. The visit was judged positively, as it conveyed a “unified” and “clear” message to Turkey, we are told.
However, several ambassadors questioned the EU’s financial commitments to deal with migration flows. Here, Mr Mordue explained that Ms von der Leyen insisted on a regional commitment and not specifically to Turkey. No specific budget was given in this case, he said.
The European Parliament is expected to add an item to the agenda of its next plenary session in April on the Turkish issue, possibly in the presence of both presidents. (Original version in French by Pascal Hansens)