Turkey’s Frustration : Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressed his country’s frustration with the European Union (EU) on Sunday, declaring that Turkey “no longer expects anything from the European Union, which has kept us waiting at its door for 40 years.” Erdogan’s comments came before an inaugural session of parliament, where he criticized the EU for not fulfilling its promises.

Erdogan emphasized that Turkey had upheld its commitments to the EU but felt let down by the lack of reciprocity. He firmly stated that he would not “tolerate any new demands or conditions on the accession process” for Turkey to join the EU, highlighting the longstanding impasse.

One of Erdogan’s sources of anger stemmed from a recent ruling by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR). The ECHR condemned Turkey for convicting a teacher, Yuksel Yalcinkaya, in connection with the 2016 attempted coup, alleging that he had downloaded an encrypted messaging app associated with the coup plotters. The ECHR’s decision that Yalcinkaya’s rights had been violated could set a significant precedent, as numerous similar cases await judgment before the Strasbourg-based court.

Turkey has attributed the failed coup attempt to a group led by the US-based preacher Fethullah Gulen and claims that a messaging app called ByLock was used to coordinate the plot. Erdogan asserted on Sunday that the ECHR’s ruling was the tipping point, stating, “The decision of the ECHR was the straw that broke the camel’s back.” He vowed that Turkey would continue its fight against what it sees as a traitorous group behind the coup attempt.