PARIS - Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who is currently in French capital Paris on an official visit, met Francois Bayrou, the leader of the Union for French Democracy (UDF).
After the meeting, Bayrou reiterated his party's proposal that Turkey should be given a privileged partnership instead of the European Union (EU) membership.
Bayrou said that they had a different attitude from parties which were against Turkey's EU membership, adding that they respected Turkey. Bayrou stressed that Turkey and France had close relations rooted in history.
Stating that there were deliberations on the future of the EU in the Union, Bayrou recalled that a consensus could not been reached yet on shaping the future of Europe.
(EÖ-AÖ) 21.07.2004