ROME - Culture Minister Huseyin Celik said on Saturday that a date to be given in Copenhagen for a date to open accession negotiations between Turkey and the European Union (EU) would be a result we would bear unwillingly.
Celik, who attended the opening session of the colloquim on ''Common Values of the EU and Basic Principles of EU Constitution'' organized by Europe Former Parliamentarians Association, left Italy for Turkey.
Culture Minister Celik told A.A correspondent that he attended the meeting as the member of the association not as the minister.
Celik said that he came to Rome to show Turkey's determination about getting a date to start negotiations with the EU.
Although Italian parliamentarians who spoke in the colloquim supported secular state understanding, it arouse concerns that they defended in the European Constitution that had been prepared that Europe was coming from Christian roots, Celik noted.
Celik said, ''you cannot erase Christianity from European culture. This is clear. Nobody wants such a thing.''
Turks were coming from a history during which they co-existed in tranquility and peace with people of other religions, Celik pointed out.
Celik said, ''the Ottoman state was like a map of religions and cultures. A democratic society is like a rainbow. We think that people can meet at a common point irrespective of their religion. We agree with everything said in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. But, some of our European friends' giving priority to their own religions and making it a basis make the EU a Christian union. This is not a right approach. Turkey has earlier brought this onto the agenda and will continue to do so. Humanity has suffered much from war of religions. To this end, we have to put forth the points where religions meet instead of pushing forward the points where they separate.''
Turkey fulfilled political and economic criteria requested by the EU because Turkish people deserved them not because the EU wanted them, Celik stated.
Celik stressed that process of implementation of criteria would accelerate if Turkey was given a date and that they would never give up their efforts to become an EU full member.
''There are some problems in implementation of our reforms but we believe we deserve to get a date,'' Celik added.