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EU lawmakers back Turkey talks, but demand 'genocide' recognition

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  • EU lawmakers back Turkey talks, but demand 'genocide' recognition

    Agence France Presse -- English
    September 28, 2005 Wednesday 3:42 PM GMT

    EU lawmakers back Turkey talks, but demand 'genocide' recognition

    STRASBOURG


    The European Parliament issued Wednesday a stern warning to Turkey to
    recognise Cyprus and a "genocide" of Armenians, days ahead of the
    start of start of EU entry talks with the huge Muslim country.

    While giving cautious backing to the opening of European Union
    membership talks with Ankara next Monday, the EU lawmakers' demands
    underscore nagging reservations in the EU about the country one day
    joining the European club.

    EU leaders gave Turkey a green light in December to start talks. But
    strains flared after the country issued a declaration in July
    reaffirming its refusal to recognize the government of Cyprus.

    Turkey has also come under pressure to recognize a "genocide" against
    Armenians under the Ottoman Empire during World War I, a highly
    sensitive issue for Ankara.

    A text adopted by MEPs said the EU legislative assembly "calls on
    Turkey to recognise the Armenian genocide" and that it "considers
    this recognition to be a prerequisite for accession to the European
    Union".

    Armenians say that up to 1.5 million of their people were slaughtered
    in mass killings under the Ottoman Empire, but Ankara denies that the
    Ottomans committed genocide against Armenian subjects.

    Turkey's refusal to recognise EU member Cyprus has so far proved the
    main stumbling block to the opening of talks, which could last for 10
    to 15 years even if all goes well.

    In the adopted text, MEPs stressed "that the rapid normalisation of
    relations between Turkey and all EU member states, including Turkey's
    recognition of the Republic of Cyprus, is a necessary component of
    the accession process".

    Turkey has steadfastly refused to endorse the internationally
    recognised Greek-Cypriot government since its troops occupied the
    island in 1974 in response to a Greek-engineered coup.

    The EU parliament's motion, which will not delay the scheduled
    opening of the entry talks, received the backing of 356 members of
    parliament while 181 voted against and 125 abstained.

    In a debate, the head of the European People's Party, the biggest in
    the parliament, Hans-Gert Pottering, voiced reservations about
    opening negotiations amid concerns over Turkey's record on human
    rights and respect for minorities.

    "We know that torture is still ongoing and if that does not stop,
    then we should be prepared to break off or suspend negotiations," he
    said. "We cannot turn a blind eye to these abuses and infringements
    on human rights."

    Greens party leader Daniel Cohn-Bendit said that the debate over
    Turkey had been tainted by racism towards Muslims.

    "Not everyone who is against Turkey is a racist, but the people who
    are against Turkey are sometimes riding or can surf on a wave of
    racism", he warned.

    Speaking to the MEPs ahead of the vote, British Europe Minister
    Douglas Alexander, whose country holds the EU's rotating presidency,
    tried to allay fears about the costs of absorbing the relatively poor
    country.

    "The negotiations with Turkey will be the most rigorous yet,
    reflecting lessons learnt from the previous wave of enlargement. They
    are also expected to take many years to conclude," he said.

    Amid ongoing unease among some member states about starting the
    talks, British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw warned that it would be a
    disaster if the EU were suddenly to slam the door on Turkey's bid to
    join the bloc

    "It would now be a huge betrayal of the hopes and expectations of the
    Turkish people.... if, at this crucial time, we turned our back on
    Turkey," he told the Labour Party's annual conference in Brighton,
    southeast England.
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