Verheugen: Schedule Will Be Set By European Council

BRUSSELS - ''The schedule will be set for Turkey by European Council,'' said the European Commissioner for Enlargement Guenter Verheugen on Wednesday.
European Commission President Romano Prodi and Verheugen held a joint news conference.
Verheugen said, ''we did not discuss schedule issue. It will be set by European Council. The concerns of EU public opinion should be taken into consideration and they should be informed. There is no need to feel uneasy about Turkey's accession. Turkish economy can reach a good level and Turkish people who migrated to EU countries can return to Turkey. We should explain this to our public opinion.''
''Turkey which will be member of the EU will not be today's Turkey. It will be a different Turkey. Similarly, the EU in the future will not be today's EU. A Turkey, which will record significant political and socio-cultural developments, will be in question,'' added Verheugen.
He stressed that the target of negotiations is full membership.
Noting, ''some countries has concerns about migration issue, thus they objected Turkey's accession to the union,'' Verheugen said, ''there is no need to fell uneasy. We have given the message that measures can be taken if necessary free movement to convince European public opinion.''
(GC-MS) 06.10.2004