"If you're siding with Putin, leave NATO"; Erdogan snapped: "No way we'll do that"

"If you're siding with Putin, leave NATO"; Erdogan snapped: "No way we'll do that"

Turkey must meet a number of criteria to enter the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) and not be a member of blocs such as NATO, the special representative of the Russian President at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia, Bakhtiyar Khakimov, told Sputnik.

"We have certain conditions for accepting new members, which consist of a number of criteria, among which are: that they are part of the Eurasian region, that they actively maintain diplomatic, trade-economic relations and cultural ties with the SCO member states, that they are not in conflict with the SCO states- and, that they are not drawn into an external conflict, that they are not under the sanctions of the UN Security Council, and that they do not participate in the work of enemy blocs or blocs that act against members of the SCO," said the Russian diplomat.

He stated that Turkey is a member of NATO, an alliance that declared Russia not only an opponent, but enemy number one.

According to him, Turkey has long participated in the work of the SCO as a dialogue partner and is involved in practical activities.

He also concluded that in the event that the Organization receives a request for membership, it will be considered in detail and emphasized that for now it has not been received.

Erdogan does not think so

Turkey has no obligation to report to the European Union after participating in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Monday.

The Turkish leader previously revealed that Ankara is seeking to join a bloc that includes Russia and China. In an interview with PBS, Erdogan was asked to comment on Ankara's efforts to join the organization, given that its members China, Russia and Iran are accused of espousing values ​​that are clearly different from those accepted by NATO and the West. Turkish leader said he did not want to choose between East and West, although he complained that the EU had so far refused to accept Ankara into the bloc.

"The European Union would keep us out for 52 years, wouldn't let us near, and then they would say, 'Why did he talk to this country, or to that country?'" he said, referring to the fact that Turkey has tried unsuccessfully for decades to join the block. Since 2016, negotiations on this issue have been stalled, and the EU accuses Ankara of human rights violations and deficiencies in the rule of law. Turkey has denied these claims.

"While we are engaged in these negotiations, we will not report to the European Union at this time," Erdogan repeated, adding that Ankara is ready to talk to any country in the world.

Turkish President has indicated that he is ready to talk to many leaders, including Chinese leader Xi Jinping, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin - even as Moscow carries out its military operation in Ukraine.

SCO is an international organization founded in 2001. The organization consists of: Russia, India, Kazakhstan, China, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Pakistan and Uzbekistan. The observer countries are Afghanistan and Mongolia, the procedure to admit Belarus has been initiated, and the partner countries are Azerbaijan, Armenia, Cambodia, Nepal, Turkey, Sri Lanka and Iran.