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Turkey issue far from resolved in EU
Copenhagen, Dec 13: European leaders put off a decision on Turkey`s membership talks for two years and faced tough last-ditch talks to seal its historic expansion into Eastern Europe.
Copenhagen, Dec 13: European leaders put off a decision on Turkey's membership talks for two years and faced tough last-ditch talks to seal its historic expansion into Eastern Europe.
At the start of a landmark summit in Copenhagen yesterday, the bloc approved multi-billion dollar funding package for its biggest-ever expansion, although key candidate Poland appears set to haggle down to the wire today.
"Tomorrow morning... I will try to conclude negotiations on the basis of the mandate I have got tonight," said Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen, the summit host. "So that is a very satisfactory result."
The EU is set at its historic two-day summit here to formally invite eight new members from formerly communist Eastern Europe plus the Mediterranean islands of Cyprus and Malta to join in May 2004.
But the issue of Turkey has long overshadowed the summit. Speaking after a dinner of EU leaders, Rasmussen announced that they had agreed to decide only in December 2004, on the basis of an evaluation of Turkey's reform progress, on whether to start membership talks.
"If and when Turkey fulfils the political criteria and if the European council in December 2004 decides that Turkey fulfils the political criteria then accession negotiations can be opened as soon as possible," he said.
The decision was given an immediate cautious welcome by Turkish officials in Copenhagen, although Prime Minister Abdullah Gul had earlier been pushing for a start date as early as 2003 in talks with EU leaders here.
Bureau Report
"Tomorrow morning... I will try to conclude negotiations on the basis of the mandate I have got tonight," said Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen, the summit host. "So that is a very satisfactory result."
The EU is set at its historic two-day summit here to formally invite eight new members from formerly communist Eastern Europe plus the Mediterranean islands of Cyprus and Malta to join in May 2004.
But the issue of Turkey has long overshadowed the summit. Speaking after a dinner of EU leaders, Rasmussen announced that they had agreed to decide only in December 2004, on the basis of an evaluation of Turkey's reform progress, on whether to start membership talks.
"If and when Turkey fulfils the political criteria and if the European council in December 2004 decides that Turkey fulfils the political criteria then accession negotiations can be opened as soon as possible," he said.
The decision was given an immediate cautious welcome by Turkish officials in Copenhagen, although Prime Minister Abdullah Gul had earlier been pushing for a start date as early as 2003 in talks with EU leaders here.
Bureau Report