Turkey Is Well Ahead Of At Least 10 E.U. Member States, Erdogan

ISTANBUL - Turkey's Prime Minister said Friday Turkey is well ahead of at least 10 EU member states.
Speaking at the Turkey-EU Joint Consultation Committee meeting, Erdogan said that there are countries in the EU that have not yet met the requirements of the Copenhagen political criteria and the Maastricht economic criteria.
"There are EU members that have not yet met the requirements of the EU acquis," Erdogan said.
"We plan to make all the necessary legal arrangements in Turkey to be in harmony with the EU acquis by the year 2013," Erdogan said.
"We look at the year 2008 as the year for a leap towards the EU," Erdogan noted.
"We will make amendments on Article 301 of the Turkish Penal Code (an article that makes insulting Turkishness a crime) very rapidly," Erdogan stated.
"Any future cases based on Article 301 will be possible only after the Turkish President has permitted such a legal act," Erdogan also said.
(SOL-AÖ)