Erdogan sees a new "window of opportunity" for "revival of relations with EU"

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Monday said "a window of opportunity emerged for the revival of Turkey's relations with the European Union."

His remark came two days after he said Turkey could "part ways" with the European Union if necessary when asked about the contents of a European Parliament report on Turkey.

Speaking today in a round table meeting in New York that was attended by representatives of some think tanks, President Erdogan said:

"I believe we can overcome problems through dialogue. We managed to do that with many countries, from the Gulf to the Western world. We opened new pages in our relations with a win-win approach, and made significant process in a short time. We are determined to continue doing this."

He continued:

"We see that a window of opportunity has recently emerged in the current critical phase for the revival of Turkey's relations with the European Union. We continue to underline the importance of reviving Turkey's EU membership process. It won't happen just because we want it to. The EU's stance will also be decisive for us to achieve our objective."

Erdogan on Saturday had told reporters ahead of his trip to the United States: "The EU is trying to break away from Turkey (...) We will make our evaluations against these developments and if necessary, we can part ways with the EU."