Austria's Foreign Minister: Hagia Sophia To Be Turned Into a Mosque Is the Latest Link in a Chain of Provocations
Turkey is moving further and further away from European values and is simply not a reliable partner for Europe. The EU must conduct a policy towards Turkey with a strong edge and clear language, based on a solid foundation of values. The EU should also make a clear cut when it comes to accession negotiations.
Erdogan orders Hagia Sophia (The Church of the Holy Wisdom) to be turned into a mosque. Decision by Turkish president risks anger from Christian communities around the world. (Picture: Hagia Sophia, Constantinople – Les Plus Belles Eglises Du Monde.) / Picture: © Wikimedia Commons / Unknown author / Public Domain
Turkey's Supreme Administrative Court had paved the way for converting the world-famous Hagia Sophia into a mosque. According to the state news agency Anadolu, the court denied the status of a museum for the 6th-century dome construction, which had been in existence since 1935.
After the court decision, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan immediately ordered the building to be opened for Islamic prayer.
The focus of the first physical meeting of EU foreign ministers since the outbreak of the Covid 19 pandemic was the EU's relations with Turkey.
Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg has criticised the decision of Turkey's Supreme Administrative Court to convert the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul back into a mosque.
Speaking on the sidelines of the first physical meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels since the outbreak of the Covid 19 pandemic, Schallenberg said "The latest developments prove once again that the European Union needs a new approach to relations with Turkey. Turkey is moving further and further away from European values and is simply not a reliable partner for Europe".
In recent months, Schallenberg said, Turkey had failed to play a positive role on several levels, including the oil and gas drilling off Cyprus and Greece, the controversial Turkish actions in Libya, Syria and northern Iraq, and most recently the rededication of the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, which is the "latest link in a chain of provocations".
"The EU must conduct a policy towards Turkey with a strong edge and clear language, based on a solid foundation of values. The EU should also make a clear cut on the subject of accession negotiations." emphasises Schallenberg.
The EU Foreign Ministers also discussed current developments in Libya, Hong Kong, Venezuela and the Serbia-Kosovo dialogue. The situation in the Latin American and Caribbean countries particularly hard hit by Covid-19 was also discussed.