‘EU putting hurdles to Turkey’s membership’

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan complained in Sofia, Bulgaria, yesterday that the European Union was putting up hurdles to Turkey’s accession to the 27-member bloc.

“Turkey is constantly being held up and various hurdles are being put in our path. This is not right,” Mr Erdogan told a news conference after meeting his Bulgarian counterpart, Boyko Borisov.

“Some hindrances are being applied for Turkey which were not applied for any other EU candidate,” Mr Erdogan said. But he added: “We are resolute in continuing our accession negotiations with the EU.”

While Turkey has been allowed to open certain negotiation chapters with the bloc, it has not yet been allowed to close any of them. And other chapters were a long way from being opened, Mr Erdogan said. Ankara kicked off membership talks with the EU in 2005.

But the process has developed at snail’s pace, partly due to an impasse over ethnically-divided Cyprus, and also because France and Germany are wary of allowing the Muslim-majority nation of 75 million into the 27-nation bloc.

“If the EU really supports its enlargement and wants to diversify, it should be open and not put up hindrances to newcomers,” Mr Erdogan said.

“Precious time” was being lost, but Turkey “is patiently working, doing its job, learning its lesson and hoping to successfully end the (accession) process,” he said.

Bulgarian premier Borisov, for his part, said that “Bulgaria, as a good neighbour, supports Turkey’s prospects for joining the EU.”