Germany's Oettinger: Turkish accession unlikely until Erdogan goes

Guenther Oettinger, European Commissioner for Digital Economy and Society, speaks during the welcome night at the world's biggest computer and software fair CeBit in Hanover, Germany, March 14, 2016. REUTERS/Nigel Treblin

BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany's European Commissioner told the Bild newspaper on Tuesday that Turkey would probably not join the European Union while Tayyip Erdogan was president.

Turkey began talks about joining the European Union in 2005 but has made little progress. The prospect of the mainly Muslim country becoming an EU member worries many countries and relations have become more strained since a failed coup in July.