In the European Union, after yesterday's Turkish referendum, Ankara was told of a split in the society. In particular, the European Commission believes that a slight gap between the supporters of raising the authority of President Rajep Tayyip Erdogan from the opponents of this initiative was a confirmation of the existence of a split.

"In connection with the slight excess of votes in the referendum and the radical consequences of constitutional changes, we urge the Turkish authorities to seek the broadest national consensus in the process of their implementation," Deutsche Welle quotes the joint statement of European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, the EU High Representative for Foreign Policy And the Neighborhood Policy of Federica Mogerini and the European Commissioner for Johannes Khan's enlargement.

They noted that the constitutional changes that will give more power to Erdogan will be assessed in terms of Turkey's commitments as a candidate country for joining the EU, as well as a member of the Council of Europe.

At the same time, Secretary General of the Council of Europe Thorbjorn Jagland called on Ankara to protect the independence of justice and the rule of law. He stressed that these requirements are enshrined in the European Convention on Human Rights and are of the greatest importance. Turkey is a member of the Council of Europe. It has ratified the human rights convention, like other participating countries. However, after the referendum, President Rajep Tayyip Erdogan announced that he was going to resume the death penalty.

This intention is contrary to the convention.

Recall, on April 16 in Turkey held a referendum on constitutional reform. According to the state news agency Anadolu, its supporters with a minimal margin (51.4% versus 48.6%) won. The opposition announced numerous violations during the voting and about intentions to challenge its results in court.

The initiators of the reform propose making 18 amendments to the basic law, which should significantly expand the powers of the president.