STOCKHOLM (CIHAN) - Swedish Foreign Minister Laila Freivalds said on Friday that the October EU progress report on Turkey would be determinant in the decision to open accession talks with Turkey.
Freivalds said progress in human rights and the fulfillment of the EU Copenhagen criteria would determine whether Turkey had made enough progress for the opening of accession talks. The Swedish Foreign Minister said that the release of the ex-MPs of the defunct pro-Kurdish DEP, including Leyla Zana, would be viewed positively by the European Union.
The EU Commission is expected to issue its progress reports on Turkey in October. The report will be the basis for the EU leaders' decision on whether to open accession talks with Turkey or not. Recent signals from the EU have underlined that the actual implementation of the EU reforms will be crucial for the leaders' decision.
Freivalds praised the progress Turkey has shown in the adoption of the EU-inspired reforms by the Turkish parliament. Swedish Foreign Minister Freivalds said that Turkey should put the adopted reforms into practice before December in order to be in alignment with the Copenhagen criteria. "Turkey should do its best up to December in order to make a good impression on the European Union."
The Swedish Foreign Minister said that the opening of the accession talks is at the discretion of the Turkish Republic.
EU leaders are due to meet in December to decide whether Turkey, a candidate country since 1999, has made enough progress on human rights and political freedoms for the initiation of accession talks.
Turkey aspires to open entry talks with the European Union (EU) by the end of 2004, and has adopted a series of EU harmonization packages, including political and economic criteria, to meet membership requirements. The Turkish Parliament has adopted eight EU harmonization packages in the last two years and abolished capital punishment in order to comply with EU standards.