BRUSSELS, Dec 17 (AFP) - The European Union is "writing history" with its decision to start membership talks with Turkey next October, the bloc's Dutch presidency said Friday at the close of an EU summit here.
"If I think back on today and the decisions that have been taken, we have been writing history today," Dutch Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende told reporters after EU leaders resolved an impasse over Cyprus that had threatened to block an accord.
He added that the agreement was an "important and brave decision by Turkey, by Cyprus and by the EU as a whole."
Balkenende hailed the deal as a breakthrough for the EU and Ankara, which has been knocking at the bloc's door for more than four decades.
"I can now add that Turkey has accepted the hand we offered them today," Balkenende said.
European Commission chief Jose Manuel Barroso said the accord marked a fresh start after a bruising two days of negotiations in Brussels that had exposed tensions over key sticking points, notably Turkey's refusal to recognize EU member Cyprus.
"Today is also a new beginning for Europe and for Turkey. The EU has opened its door to Turkey," Barroso said. "I genuinely believe that we have a decision today that is good for Turkey."
"It's a day on which the people of Turkey should rejoice in their new European future," he added, calling it a "significant milestone" in Europe's history. "Turkey has taken its European destiny in its own hands.
But he also warned: "My message to the people of Turkey is very clear: this is not the end of the process, this is the beginning.
"We'll start negotiations. And I think we have now to create a positive dynamic on both sides.
"With hard work and commitment I believe we can succeed, and that this day will be remembered as a very important day in the history of Turkey and the history of Europe," he added.
12/17/2004 17:05 GMT - AFP