Members of Turkish forces guard the prison complex in Aliaga, Izmir province, western Turkey, where jailed US pastor Andrew Craig Brunson is appearing at trial inside the complex, Monday, April 16, 2018. Brunson, 50, a US evangelical pastor from North Carolina, was arrested in December 2016 for alleged links to both an outlawed Kurdish insurgent group and the network of the U.S.-based Muslim cleric who Turkey blames for masterminding a failed military coup that year. He has denied all allegations. The court adjourned trial until May 7, 2018 and ruled that Brunson remain in custody until then. (AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis)
The Associated Press
BRUSSELS (AP) - Turkey has failed to make progress and is even backsliding on bringing its laws into line with European Union standards as it seeks to join the bloc, the EU's executive arm said Tuesday.
The Turkish government responded by saying the EU had never been "objective, equal or fair" toward Turkey.
The European Commission, which monitors membership talks, said in a report that Ankara continues to crack down on opponents and the media and that "no progress has been achieved" in fighting corruption.
Brussels also called on Turkey to lift the state of emergency that was introduced after a 2016 coup attempt.
It said the "broad scale and collective nature, and the disproportionality of measures taken" by the Turkish government under the state of emergency, "such as widespread dismissals, arrests, and detentions," raised "serious concerns."
In Ankara, Deputy Prime Minister Bekir Bozdag said the EU had welcomed as members countries that were economically and politically less developed than Turkey.
"They have displayed an approach that is not fair or equal," Bozdag said. "It is not Turkey that is moving away from the EU. It is the EU, which ... has not acted in an impartial manner."
He said: "Despite this, Turkey has not given up on its membership aim and does not intend to do so. If they are giving up (on Turkey's membership) then they should say so."
Turkey began EU membership talks in 2005, but the discussions have been at a standstill in recent years.
Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, centre, accompanied by Prime Minister Binali Yildirim, arrives to deliver a speech at his ruling Justice and Development (AKP) Party weekly meeting in Ankara, Turkey, Tuesday, April 17, 2018. The ruling party will evaluate a call for early presidential and parliamentary elections, scheduled for 2019, made by the nationalist leader, Devlet Bahceli, who suggested Aug. 26, 2018 as a possible date, saying "there is no point in prolonging this any longer." Following a narrowly approved referendum last year, Turkey is switching from a parliamentary system to a presidential system that consolidates most powers in the hands of the president. (Kayhan Ozer/Pool Photo via AP)
The Associated Press
Members of Turkish forces patrol the perimeter of a prison complex in Aliaga, Izmir province, western Turkey, where jailed US pastor Andrew Craig Brunson is appearing for his trial at a court inside the complex, Monday, April 16, 2018. Brunson, 50, a US evangelical pastor from North Carolina, was arrested in December 2016 for alleged links to both an outlawed Kurdish insurgent group and the network of the U.S.-based Muslim cleric who Turkey blames for masterminding a failed military coup that year. He has denied all allegations. The court adjourned trial until May 7, 2018 and ruled that Brunson remain in custody until then. (AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis)
The Associated Press
A member of Turkish forces secure the perimeter of the prison complex in Aliaga, Izmir province, western Turkey, where jailed US pastor Andrew Craig Brunson is appearing for his trial at a court inside the complex, Monday, April 16, 2018. Brunson, 50, a US evangelical pastor from North Carolina, was arrested in December 2016 for alleged links to both an outlawed Kurdish insurgent group and the network of the U.S.-based Muslim cleric who Turkey blames for masterminding a failed military coup that year. He has denied all allegations. The court adjourned trial until May 7, 2018 and ruled that Brunson remain in custody until then. (AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis)
The Associated Press
Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, delivers a speech at his ruling Justice and Development (AKP) Party weekly meeting in Ankara, Turkey, Tuesday, April 17, 2018. The ruling party will evaluate a call for early presidential and parliamentary elections, scheduled for 2019, made by the nationalist leader, Devlet Bahceli, who suggested Aug. 26, 2018 as a possible date, saying "there is no point in prolonging this any longer." Following a narrowly approved referendum last year, Turkey is switching from a parliamentary system to a presidential system that consolidates most powers in the hands of the president. (Kayhan Ozer/Pool Photo via AP)
The Associated Press