EU Commission: Turkey not to become EU member if it reintroduces death penalty

Turkey is in no position to become a European Union member any time soon and all negotiations for it to join will stop immediately if it reintroduces the death penalty, the EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said.

"I believe that Turkey, in its current state, is not in a position to become a member any time soon and not even over a longer period," Juncker said on French television France 2.

He said that a country that included the death penalty in its legislative arsenal had no place in the European Union, Reuters reports.