Suspending accession talks would be more counterproductive than helpful

EU capitals will refrain from freezing accession talks with Turkey in contrast to a recent European Parliament decision as doing so would be more counterproductive than helpful, according to a former EU envoy to Ankara. 

"The likely attitude is that the EU will move on what is working, like the Customs Union and the refugee deal," Marc Pierini, who is currently a visiting scholar at Carnegie Europe, told the Hürriyet Daily News in Brussels.

What do you think will happen in the aftermath of the decision?

Parliament's resolution is a signal of support for democracy in Turkey and its civilians. It reflects the fact that given the sharp deterioration in the rule of law, silence was not an option.
Politics are local and members of EU have to take into account the perception of their voters and that perception is that Turkey is going toward an authoritarian system. Everybody understands that a coup requires corrective measures but as the parliament said, [there is a] feeling this is going way over what is necessary. 

The crisis is internal in Turkey, and I would agree that the EU did not always maneuver the smart way in this crisis. The essential point is that the Turkish leadership still claims to have the objective to join the EU but its rule of law architecture is further away from EU standards.

Do you think the resolution will have any impact in terms of improving the democratic situation in Turkey?

We have a situation where whatever it does, the EU has no leverage. This has been said by the leadership so many times.

I would agree that sending negative signals can be perceived as hypocritical, ill-footed and so on, but I don't see it as a strategic mistake. First, there...