TURKEY HAS A CHANCE TO JOIN EU BUT NOT IN NEAR FUTURE
PanARMENIAN.Net
05.06.2008 15:55 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Turkey has a chance to join the European Union but
it’s premature to speak of it now, deputy chair of European Commission
directorate for foreign affairs said in Yerevan.
"Turkey should live through a long period of reform. I am not
authorized to go into details, since I do not possess exhaustive
information but I think it would be a long process," Mr Hugues
Mingarelli said.
The EU-Turkey accession talks opened in 2006 but were suspended
over Ankara’s unwillingness to open sea and airports for Cyprus. The
problems with freedom of expression and national minorities’ rights
are also an obstacle.
>From July 2007, the EU presidency will rotate to France whose President
Nicolas Sarkozy has numerously objected Turkey’s membership.
Germany is also against accession and offers ‘privileged partnership’
to Turkey.