Source: CNA
A local source in Brussels said that if Turkey continues to take unilateral actions against Cyprus in violation of existing UN Security Council resolutions, there will be a reaction, noting that Nicosia "has no better ally than Brussels."
The same source asserts that the EU's response to Cyprus and Ukraine, two nations that have been the targets of unlawful invasion by foreign nations, does not involve "two measures and two weights." At the same time, she stated that the Union's foreign policy is determined by unanimity and that any decision to take a tougher stance against Erdogan should be the result of a consensus among the 27 member states.
He claimed that the EU's sanctions against people and organizations for engaging in illegal drilling near Cyprus were made possible by the 27-member bloc's unanimous vote and the success of the Cypriots' efforts to persuade the other partners.
Since this is how the EU functions, he said, it is up to a country's capacity, as well as that of its experts and diplomats, to persuade others.
Josep Borel, the EU's High Representative for Foreign Policy, was also quoted as saying that "we need to be tougher on Turkey" and that he is fully aware of the situation in Turkey.
Other partners, he claimed, consider increased engagement with Turkey to be more advantageous and that the conflict would be less severe.
The source added that it would take a unanimous vote of the 27 states to decide that the only way to deal with individuals like Putin or Erdogan is "very forcefully," which he said was not the case at this point. Instead, the source predicted that the EU would act more forcefully against those who disregard rules, intimidate their neighbors, and violate international law.
Regarding the Turkish president, the EU source predicted that, barring an electoral defeat, all member states will eventually realize that the only way to communicate with him is to "speak the language of power" and "slap him down." This is because that is the only language he is able to understand.
However, he concluded that the cases of the Turkish invasion of Cyprus and the Russian invasion of Ukraine cannot be compared because the EU now has 27 member states, whereas the aggressor in the case of Ukraine is a country that is a member of the UN Security Council "for no reason", as he put it.
According to the EU source, the only comparison is that this is an utterly unlawful invasion in both instances.
Additionally, he determined that it is unlikely that Turkey would attack Greece, an EU and NATO member, as doing so would result in the dissolution of NATO.
The same source stated that the EU will continue to support Ukraine for as long as necessary because it is a matter of principle and it is in the Union's best interest that Ukraine not capitulate.
Otherwise, he claimed, the rules-based global order that safeguards smaller nations like Cyprus would be destroyed.
The same source claimed that the Union always finds solutions, just as it did in the past during the economic crisis, for managing the effects of the Ukrainian on the 27 states. He concluded that the price we are paying now is extremely low compared to what the Ukrainians paid and what we would have to pay if Russia prevailed.
Regardless of the outcomes, he asserted, we will be able to handle them because, when taken as a whole, we are stronger.
Additionally, he stated that the EU would provide Ukraine with 40 billion euros in financial aid up until the following year, while the combined military aid provided by the EU and member states is thought to be between 8 and 10 billion euros.
