European Union leaders on Wednesday night adopted a declaration affirming the desire for a mutually beneficial relationship with Turkey and a strategic interest in a stable environment in the eastern Mediterranean.
The European Commission is working on concrete proposals, including considering resuming talks on the modernization of the customs union between the EU and Turkey.
This project, a planned visa liberalization and EU accession talks had previously been put on hold due to setbacks in the rule of law in Turkey.
The European Commission also recently emphasized that Turkey's comparatively uncritical stance towards the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas is at odds with the EU's position.
The latter classifies Hamas, which on October 7 led the worst massacre in Israel's history triggering the Gaza war, as a terrorist organization.
During the negotiations, Cyprus managed to ensure that its conflict with Turkey was also addressed. The island of Cyprus has been split into a Greek-Cypriot south and a smaller Turkish-Cypriot north since a Greek coup and a Turkish military intervention in 1974.
Only Turkey recognizes Northern Cyprus as a full state. The Turkish army maintains a presence there. The government of the EU island republic in Nicosia controls the south of the island.
While the whole of Cyprus became a member of the European Union in 2004, EU law is only valid in the southern part until a possible reunification.
According to the joint declaration, the EU remains committed to a comprehensive solution that is in line with previous UN resolutions and the principles of the EU. The bloc said it's ready to play an active role.
Turkey-EU accession talks have been ongoing since 2005 but membership talks are effectively frozen amid concerns in Brussels over deteriorating rule of law and human rights in Turkey. Turkey's admission into the EU in any foreseeable future is therefore considered unrealistic.