A+ A-

No EU-wide arms embargo on Turkey - spokesperson

BRUSSELS, June 28 (KUNA) -- The European Union (EU) has not placed a bloc-wide arms embargo on Turkey and it depends on individual member states to decide to issue licences for arms export to Ankara or not , an EU spokesperson said on Tuesday.
"Related to Turkish activities on Syrian soil on Syrian territory , especially in the Kurdish-populated provinces in the north and north-west , several EU member states have decided not to issue new export licences for arms exports to Turkey," EU spokesperson for foreign affairs and security policy , Peter Stano, told a news conference in Brussels.
Some EU member states take decisions on new license applications on arms sales to Turkey on a case by case basis, reiterating that there is no EU arms exports ban to Turkey given that the matter is largely a "national decision."(end) nk.nam