On Monday, European Union foreign ministers assess the reasons for imposing sanctions on Turkey over a gas dispute in the Mediterranean before EU leaders decide whether to implement their threat of punitive measures.
The ministers will not make decisions in their meeting today, leaving that to a summit on Thursday by European Union leaders who asked Turkey in October to stop drilling in the disputed waters in the eastern Mediterranean or face the consequences.
Turkey's move in late November to return an exploration ship to its ports eased tensions, but European Union officials and diplomats said the broader issues related to Libya, Syria, Russia and authoritarianism in Turkey have hardened the EU's positions.
"I have no knowledge of any government in the European Union that challenges the view that the situation is worse than October and that the leaders should think about the consequences," said a senior EU official.
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