Erdogan: We Want A Date For Opening Of Accession Talks With E.U.

PARIS - Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Tuesday, ''Turkey wants a date not for full membership, but for opening of accession talks with the European Union (EU).''
Prime Minister Erdogan, who is currently paying a state visit to France, met members of the French Parliamentary Foreign Affairs Commission.
During the meeting, Erdogan informed members of the commission on historical development of the bilateral relations between Turkey and France.
Upon a question about Turkey's EU membership process, Prime Minister Erdogan said, ''Turkey wants a date not for full membership, but for opening of accession talks with the EU.''
Referring to recent developments in Iraq, Prime Minister Erdogan said, ''Turkey has always advocated that Iraq's territorial integrity should be protected, and none of ethnical groups in the country should be allowed to be dominant over another.''
Upon a question about so-called Armenian genocide, Prime Minister Erdogan said, ''it is an issue with which historians should deal. As politicians, we are obliged to build the future instead of discussing such issues. Armenian diaspora has been trying to keep the so-called Armenian genocide high on agenda. In fact, it is not beneficial for Armenia at all. The bilateral relations between Turkey and Armenia cannot be improved as long as such campaigns continue. If they put an end to their campaign of defamation against Turkey, border gates between Turkey and Armenia may be opened.''
(UK) 20.07.2004