A delegation of high-level EU officials, including foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, visited Ankara, Turkey, on June 30 to discuss economic and security cooperation with senior Turkish officials, including President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan.

The visit comes a week ahead of the July 7-8 NATO Summit in Ankara. Turkey became an EU membership candidate in 1999; however, the accession process has stalled due to Turkey's democratic backsliding, lack of judicial reforms and refusal to recognize the Republic of Cyprus.