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EU Commission seeks membership for Turkey

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  • EU Commission seeks membership for Turkey

    Reuters, UK
    June 29 2005

    EU Commission seeks membership for Turkey
    Wed Jun 29, 2005 3:24 PM BST


    By Sebastian Alison

    BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The EU's executive Commission reaffirmed on
    Wednesday that it aims to bring Turkey into the 25-nation bloc,
    but not before 2014, adopting a draft mandate to start negotiations
    despite fierce internal and public debate.

    "The negotiations will be based on Turkey's own merits and the pace
    will depend on Turkey's progress in meeting the requirements for
    membership," said a draft negotiating mandate adopted on Wednesday
    as the basis for accession talks.

    "The shared objective of the negotiations is accession."

    The negotiations are scheduled to start on October 3, as agreed last
    December by EU leaders, provided the bloc's 25 foreign ministers
    unanimously approve the mandate by then.

    The document states that negotiations for Turkish European Union
    membership can only be concluded from 2014, after the bloc's next
    long-term budget which runs from 2007 to 2013.

    Growing public scepticism about Turkey's bid, especially in western
    Europe, was reflected in a tough political debate inside the 25-member
    EU executive on the terms and timing of the "negotiating framework".

    EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn was more than two hours late
    for a news conference to announce that the Commission had adopted the
    mandate and told reporters: "We had a lengthy, argumentative and also
    very political debate.

    Some Commissioners had argued the mandate should contain wording
    allowing for Turkey to be granted only a "privileged partnership"
    with the EU rather then membership, he said, although in the end no
    such language was included.

    "STICK TO OUR WORD"

    Commission sources said Luxembourg's commissioner, Viviane Reding, had
    led a small group arguing against full membership and had questioned
    the need to adopt a mandate now.

    She was backed to a lesser extent by Charlie McCreevy of Ireland,
    Benita Ferrero-Waldner of Austria and Jan Figel of Slovakia, the
    sources said.

    But Rehn prevailed, noting that EU leaders had reaffirmed unanimously
    their commitment to accession talks at a summit just two weeks ago,
    after the French and Dutch referendums rejecting the EU constitution,
    in which hostility to Turkish membership was a factor.

    "The European Union has made commitments to Turkey ... We stick to
    our word," he said. "Europe needs a stable democratic and prosperous
    Turkey. It is in our own strategic interests."

    However, he said he fully expected an impassioned public debate
    about Turkey in which the issue of full membership versus "privileged
    partnership" would be aired for years to come.

    The Commission called on EU governments to launch a debate on Turkey's
    relationship with Europe.

    A growing number of centre-right leaders in western Europe,
    including the likely next German chancellor, Angela Merkel, and a
    top presidential contender in France, Nicolas Sarkozy, oppose Turkish
    entry and favour the "privileged partnership" option.

    But Britain, which takes over the EU's rotating presidency on Friday
    for six months and will chair the start of accession talks, is a
    staunch advocate of Turkish membership.

    Commissioner Peter Mandelson led the pro-Turkey camp in the Commission
    debate, the sources said.

    Rehn called the negotiating framework "rigorous," and highlighted its
    demands that Turkey develops better relations with its neighbours --
    notably Cyprus, divided since 1974 into Greek and Turkish Cypriot
    communities, and Armenia, with which it has no diplomatic relations
    and a sealed border.

    He said Turkey had been working constructively to improve ties with
    Cyprus, although more needed to be done with the eventual aim of
    reunifying the island.

    "So far we have not succeeded. I don't take any sides on this issue,
    I work for a solution," he said, adding that he would emphasise
    Cyprus in the Commission's next regular report on Turkey's progress
    to membership, due on November 9.
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