ANKARA - German Federal Parliament Speaker Wolfgang Thierse has said he believed that the European Union (EU) should set a date at the end of the year for opening of accession talks with Turkey.
Turkish Parliament Speaker Bulent Arinc met with German Federal Parliament Speaker Thierse on Tuesday.
Following their tete-a-tete meeting, Arinc and Thierse presided meeting between Turkish and German parliamentary delegations.
Speaking at the joint news conference after the meetings, Thierse said that there had been very good relations between Turkish and German parliaments.
Noting that 2.5 million Turkish people living in Germany had constituted a bridge of friendship between the two countries, Thierse said that they had been monitoring the dynamic process and reforms in Turkey.
Pointing out that Turkey had been progressing on the right track to get a date for opening of accession talks with the EU, Thierse stressed that the German Federal Parliament had been supporting Turkey's EU membership process.
He emphasized that a considerable majority at the German Federal Parliament had been supporting Turkey's EU process.
Highlighting importance of Turkey's being given the EU membership perspective, Thierse said that such a perspective was necessary to support the developments in Turkey.
Thierse noted that Turkey's membership to the EU was of importance since there had been 15 million Muslims in Europe and 2.5 million Turkish people in Germany.
Referring to Turkey's position as a bridge between the Western Europe and the Islam world, Thierse highlighted importance of launching a fight against misuse of religious beliefs.
Stressing that they wanted to assist Turkey since Turkey had been exerting efforts to preserve both modernism and the Islam, Thierse said that those were important factors in regard to provision of peace in Europe and in the region.
Thierse said that he would be pleased with hosting Turkish Parliament Speaker Arinc in Germany in the coming months.
Noting he believed that the EU should set a date at the end of the year for opening of accession talks with Turkey, Thierse said that it would be beneficial for both Turkey and the EU.
Meanwhile, Arinc said in his part that Thierse was the first German Federal Parliament Speaker paying a state visit to Turkey after a long period of time.
Noting that several important issues were discussed during their meeting, Arinc told reporters, ''Mr. Thierse has a three-day program in Turkey. He will meet with chairmen of some parliamentary commissions tomorrow. Later, he will visit Istanbul and Izmir.''
Stressing that the bilateral relations between Turkey and Germany had been further progressing each day, Arinc recalled that both German Foreign Minister Fischer and German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder had expressed their support to Turkey's EU membership process during their visits to Turkey.
Referring to economic and commercial relations between Turkey and Germany, Arinc said, ''the current trade volume between our countries is about 16-17 billion U.S. dollars.''
Stressing that Turkey deserved to get a date for opening of accession talks with the EU, Arinc added, ''Mr. Thierse expressed his appreciation with the reform process in Turkey. He stressed that they would continue supporting Turkey in its EU membership process.''
(MS) 20.04.2004