European Parliament president says Turkey’s EU membership talks should be suspended

President of the European Parliament David Sassoli on Thursday called for tougher EU sanctions against Turkey because of Ankara’s invasion of north Syria.

Sassoli also told EU leaders that Turkey’s membership talks with the bloc should be suspended, Reuters reports.

“Sanctions should be much tougher and include existing contracts,” the Italian center-left politician told reporters in Brussels.

Earlier this week, EU governments committed to not signing new arms deals with Turkey, but did not take any action over existing ones.