Turkey's EU minister Omer Celik said that German Chancellor Angela Merkel's comments about halting the expansion of a customs union between Ankara and the European Union harmed the credibility of the bloc.
"This is an unfortunate statement. We should emphasize that no EU member should give orders to EU institutions or EU processes," Celik told a news conference in Ankara.
"These situations are very dangerous, they represent statements that harm the EU's credibility," Reuters cited him as saying.
Celik said both Turkey and the European Union would gain from changes to the customs union. "But they are acting as if doing so is a favor to Turkey. Let me be very clear, we are in no rush," he added.
Merkel said on Wednesday there would be no expansion of the customs union and "no kind of deepening at all" in ties between Turkey and the European Union after a series of disputes linked to Turkey's crackdown following last year's failed coup attempt.
