Turkey hits back at EU over Imamoglu arrest criticism

Ankara has accused the European Union of political bias after criticism over the arrest of Istanbul mayor Ekrem Imamoglu.

Turkey’s EU ambassador, Faruk Kaymakci, said the European Parliament is deflecting from its own problems and warned its credibility is shrinking.

He called Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos’s decision to boycott the Antalya Diplomacy Forum a “political move” meant to please certain EU factions.

Kaymakci said the EU is undermining judicial independence in Turkey and accused it of double standards for commenting on Turkish cases while staying silent on similar issues in member states.

The European Parliament debated the state of democracy in Turkey last week, focusing on Imamoglu’s arrest. Kos cancelled meetings in Turkey in protest.