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EP'S TURKEY REPORT ANGERS BRUSSELS
By Emre Demir, Suleyman Kurt, Strasbourg, Ankara
Zaman Online, Turkey
Sept 6 2006
The Turkey report approved by the European Parliament (E.P.) Foreign
Affairs Committee on Monday drew strong reaction from Brussels after
Ankara's response.
President of the E.U. Commission, Jose Manuel Barroso said recognition
of the so-called Armenian Genocide would not be a precondition
for Turkey's E.U. membership. Some European parliamentarians
say the Armenian issue was being used to hinder Turkey's
E.U. membership. Ankara reacted to the report saying that it was
"lacking commonsense and objectivity." The report, compiled by Dutch
legislator Camiel Eurlings, contained an article that requires Turkey
to recognize the so-called Armenian Genocide, a possible stipulation
mentioned for the first time last year, to gain E.U. membership. There
were some last-minute additions to the report, which also claimed
Turkey had committed genocide against its Greek Pontus and Syrian
populations.
Ankara strongly objected to the report and emphasized: "The efforts
to assert non-objective conditions on issues such as the so-called
Armenian Genocide, which requires serious professional studying and
discussions, was met with great sadness by Turkey." Spokesman for the
Foreign Ministry Namik Tan demanded that this mistake be corrected
at the next E.P. General Assembly meeting.
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said there was no need
to exaggerate the report and Turkey had not accepted any preset
conditions relating to the so-called Armenian Genocide, adding that
Turkey's stance was very strong.
E.U.-Turkey Joint Parliamentary Commission Co-Chairman Joost Lagendijk
and Turkish origin-legislator Cem Ozdemir called the report a new
obstacle for Turkey's E.U. journey. The two legislators said this
report would weaken the reformists' hands in Turkey, and added:
"If you aggravate Turkey's conditions every year, you give the image
that the E.P. is against Turkey's E.U. membership."
The report's author, Camiel Eurlings, said yesterday that the "spirit"
of the report did not change with the last minute additions; however,
the tone of its voice had. Eurlings said he believed Turkey should
recognize the so-called Armenian Genocide; however, this condition
cannot be held as a pre-condition as it is not in the Copenhagen
Criteria.
'EP Report Berates Turkey'
The European media evaluated the E.P. Foreign Affairs Assembly's
harsh report and assessed that the deepest immediate division between
Turkey and the E.U. was related to Turkey's decision not to open its
ports to Greek Cyprus. The International Herald-Tribune wrote that
E.P. legislators had harshly criticized Turkey; while The Times of
London emphasized that the report predicted a suspension of Turkey's
E.U. membership negotiations.
By Emre Demir, Suleyman Kurt, Strasbourg, Ankara
Zaman Online, Turkey
Sept 6 2006
The Turkey report approved by the European Parliament (E.P.) Foreign
Affairs Committee on Monday drew strong reaction from Brussels after
Ankara's response.
President of the E.U. Commission, Jose Manuel Barroso said recognition
of the so-called Armenian Genocide would not be a precondition
for Turkey's E.U. membership. Some European parliamentarians
say the Armenian issue was being used to hinder Turkey's
E.U. membership. Ankara reacted to the report saying that it was
"lacking commonsense and objectivity." The report, compiled by Dutch
legislator Camiel Eurlings, contained an article that requires Turkey
to recognize the so-called Armenian Genocide, a possible stipulation
mentioned for the first time last year, to gain E.U. membership. There
were some last-minute additions to the report, which also claimed
Turkey had committed genocide against its Greek Pontus and Syrian
populations.
Ankara strongly objected to the report and emphasized: "The efforts
to assert non-objective conditions on issues such as the so-called
Armenian Genocide, which requires serious professional studying and
discussions, was met with great sadness by Turkey." Spokesman for the
Foreign Ministry Namik Tan demanded that this mistake be corrected
at the next E.P. General Assembly meeting.
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said there was no need
to exaggerate the report and Turkey had not accepted any preset
conditions relating to the so-called Armenian Genocide, adding that
Turkey's stance was very strong.
E.U.-Turkey Joint Parliamentary Commission Co-Chairman Joost Lagendijk
and Turkish origin-legislator Cem Ozdemir called the report a new
obstacle for Turkey's E.U. journey. The two legislators said this
report would weaken the reformists' hands in Turkey, and added:
"If you aggravate Turkey's conditions every year, you give the image
that the E.P. is against Turkey's E.U. membership."
The report's author, Camiel Eurlings, said yesterday that the "spirit"
of the report did not change with the last minute additions; however,
the tone of its voice had. Eurlings said he believed Turkey should
recognize the so-called Armenian Genocide; however, this condition
cannot be held as a pre-condition as it is not in the Copenhagen
Criteria.
'EP Report Berates Turkey'
The European media evaluated the E.P. Foreign Affairs Assembly's
harsh report and assessed that the deepest immediate division between
Turkey and the E.U. was related to Turkey's decision not to open its
ports to Greek Cyprus. The International Herald-Tribune wrote that
E.P. legislators had harshly criticized Turkey; while The Times of
London emphasized that the report predicted a suspension of Turkey's
E.U. membership negotiations.