BELGIUM: EU agrees partial freeze on Turkey talks

European Union foreign ministers agreed on Monday (December 11) on a partial freeze of Turkey's EU membership talks to penalise Ankara for failing to normalise trade with Cyprus. But they also stressed there should be no breakdown in talks with the EU's biggest and most strategically important candidate on the sensitive border between Europe and the Middle East. Ministers decided unanimously to suspend eight of the 35 chapters or policy areas into which negotiations are divided, covering trade, financial services, agriculture and transport, and review Turkey's compliance annually until 2009. The 25 ministers agreed that negotiations on sectors not affected by the freeze should go ahead but not be concluded until Ankara complies with its customs union obligation to open ports and airports to traffic from Cyprus. "This decision strikes th eright balance and it is a carefully calibrated decision. On the one hand it sends a signal to Turkey that failure to meet legal obligations cannot remain without consequences. On the other hand at the same time it clarifies th eway forward and enables progress in the accession negotiations," European Enlargement Commissioner Ollie Rehn said at the final news conference. A spokesman for Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan said he had no immediate comment. Rehn re-iterated a previous message that Europe needs Turkey and wants to include Turkey within its Union, as long as conditions are properly met. Opinion polls show many Europeans would shed no tears if talks with the large, Muslim nation collapsed, but governments say Europe needs to embrace a country that can bridge the Western and Islamic worlds and serve as a vital energy hub. Cyprus, Greece and Austria went into the meeting insisting the EU must set a date to review Turkey's compliance, which Ankara had made clear it would see as an unacceptable ultimatum. The EU will report regularly on the progress of Turkey and said it would not turn the upcoming meeting of heads of state into a Turkey summit. "We rely on regular reporting and there is no singgle particular rendez vous clause, no ultimatum. Europe needs a stable and democratic Turkey and Turkey needs Europe both politically and economically. This is why we started accession talks a year ago," Rehn said. EU ministers agreed again in principle to end the economic isolation of Turkish Cypriot northern Cyprus, as they did first in 2004, but diplomats said arrangements would still have to be worked out under German presidency in January. Greece said the decision, which was unanimous in the European Council, sent the right message to Turkey. "Yes Greece is satisfied. We believe that the European Union guarded its credibility and sent a clear message to Turkey. We would like to have a European Turkey in the European union as a member state but a european Turkey must comply with the European obligations," said Dora Bakoyannis, Greek Foreign Minister. Greek Cypriot Foreign Minister Yiorgos Lillikas said the EU had given its support for United Nations efforts to resolve the Cyprus problem and that he also supported the EU decision on Monday. "There is a wish expressed by the presidency concerning the solution of the Cyprus problem. We agreed with text in which it refers to the UN resolutions, calling for the respect of these resolutions, and its not the republic of Cyprus who does not respect those resolutions its Turkey, but also reference on the principle on which the settlement should be based and these principles are the values and the principles of the European Union and we agree completely on that. For the rest we always worked and we welcome any declaration concerning the implementation of the agreement 8th of July that the leaders of the two communities reached in Cyprus during the visit of Mr Gambari so we agree completely with the text and the statement of the presidency," Lillikas said. Turkey's most outspoken support, Britain, said it was satisfied by the decision because it signalled a continuation of talks. Foreign Minister Margaret Beckett said there was no train crash. "People have been talking about a train crash, there is no train crash. The train is firmly on the track. 27 out of 35 chapters are still available for negotiaiton and I think that is on balance a good result," Beckett said. Cyprus has been split since Turkish troops invaded in 1974 after a brief Greek Cypriot coup backed by Greece. The EU admitted the divided island as a member in 2004, represented only by the Greek Cypriot government. Paradoxically, the European Commission proposal approved by ministers could revive the 14-month-old talks, since Cyprus has been blocking the opening of any new chapter since September. Ankara made a last-minute oral offer last week to open a major port to traffic from Cyprus and said it would do more if the EU allowed direct trade with the Turkish Cypriots. The goodwill gesture was not enough to avert a partial freeze but some diplomats said it may have prevented harsher EU action. Turkey's Foreign Ministry made a rare appeal for unity among state institutions, including the powerful military, on Sunday, after criticism of its offer to the EU by the powerful army General Staff and President Ahmet Necdet Sezer.

ITN Source | December 12, 2006

Tags:. .isolation. .implementation. .unity. .strategically. .sensitive