Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that Turkey has other plans up its sleeve if the EU membership talks fail.
Erdogan told BBC that it would even be a relief in case the bloc made it clear that it would not happen.
"We are loyal to our word. If the EU bluntly says 'We will not be able to accept Turkey into the EU' this will be comforting for us. We will then initiate our plan B, and C," he said.
Erdogan underlined that the EU was not "indispensable" for Turkey, which he said "is able to stand on its own two feet" with a per capita income of more than $11,000.
Asked whether he personally believed that Turkey would be better out of the EU, Erdogan said Turkish people’s opinion of the bloc had changed over time.
"The majority of the Turkish people don’t want the EU anymore. They don’t think the EU’s approach to Turkey is sincere," he stressed.
