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EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - The EU will kick off to a difficult start after the summer break when foreign ministers meet to discuss Turkey on Thursday - the last ministerial meeting before accession talks are due to open at the beginning of October.

The nature of the meeting, where no formal political decisions will be taken, means there is a chance of a more frank discussion on the exact position of each member state.

This may go some way to clear up the doubts surrounding the talks, which have become exacerbated over the summer months.

On Friday (26 August), more uncertainty was added to the political mix following statements from Paris.

French president Jacques Chirac, previously a strong supporter of opening talks with Ankara, appeared to be wavering on the issue when his spokesperson said that France wants to discuss Turkey's refusal to recognise Cyprus.

Technically, this is not a criterion for opening talks with the EU, although it has been implicit that Turkey would have to do this after talks have begun.

During the summer, Ankara agreed to extend a customs agreement to cover the whole of the EU, including Cyprus, but attached a declaration explicitly saying this did not mean formal recognition of the Mediterranean island-state.

The European Commission is to present its legal interpretation of the declaration at Thursday's meeting.

It is also set to reiterate its view that any move on the recognition of Cyprus should be governed by the UN as well as pointing out that Turkey has fulfilled all the criteria for opening the talks, and that member states now have a responsibility to fulfil their side of the bargain.

German support hangs in balance
However, much of the uncertainty is coming from Germany, which faces a general election on 18 September.

While the current chancellor is a firm supporter of Turkey and of opening the talks on time, he is predicted to lose the elections and be replaced by the Christian Democrat, Angela Merkel.

Ms Merkel, along with her party, has made it clear that she is against Turkey becoming a full member of the bloc and wrote to conservative heads of government last week to make this point clear.

If the leaders of both Germany and France start adding hurdles in the run-up to the talks, then they are very unlikely to start on time.

Another issue likely to become embroiled in this discussion is Croatia's membership bid.

Zagreb was supposed to open talks with the EU in March but was deemed not to have done enough to help find the fugitive general, Ante Gotovina.

For certain countries, such as Austria, a strong supporter of Croatia's bid, it will be hard to agree to open talks with Turkey when Zagreb's prospects remain up in the air.

Still no negotiating mandate
All of this comes on top of the fact that the EU's negotiating mandate with Turkey has not been agreed.

It has to be given the green light by all member states so that talks can start.

It is thought to be too political an issue to be agreed at EU ambassador level, meaning there has to be a formal ministerial meeting.

As of yet, there is no formal ministerial meeting in Brussels scheduled until 3 October, leaving open the prospect that the mandate will have to be signed off on the day the talks are formally supposed to open.

All of this will be a big headache for the current British EU presidency, which is insisting that talks start as planned.

For its part, Turkey has remained upbeat about the prospect of the talks opening on time.

"The talks will begin because EU leaders are prudent enough not to overshadow or disregard strategic policies...due to internal political troubles or problems relating to conjecture", foreign minister Abdullah Gul was quoted by the Anatolia news agency as saying over the weekend.

29th August 2005, 12:54	#16
merlin Non Active Member	Turkey looms large on EU agenda.... EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - The EU will kick off to a difficult start after the summer break when foreign ministers meet to discuss Turkey on Thursday - the last ministerial meeting before accession talks are due to open at the beginning of October. The nature of the meeting, where no formal political decisions will be taken, means there is a chance of a more frank discussion on the exact position of each member state. This may go some way to clear up the doubts surrounding the talks, which have become exacerbated over the summer months. On Friday (26 August), more uncertainty was added to the political mix following statements from Paris. French president Jacques Chirac, previously a strong supporter of opening talks with Ankara, appeared to be wavering on the issue when his spokesperson said that France wants to discuss Turkey's refusal to recognise Cyprus. Technically, this is not a criterion for opening talks with the EU, although it has been implicit that Turkey would have to do this after talks have begun. During the summer, Ankara agreed to extend a customs agreement to cover the whole of the EU, including Cyprus, but attached a declaration explicitly saying this did not mean formal recognition of the Mediterranean island-state. The European Commission is to present its legal interpretation of the declaration at Thursday's meeting. It is also set to reiterate its view that any move on the recognition of Cyprus should be governed by the UN as well as pointing out that Turkey has fulfilled all the criteria for opening the talks, and that member states now have a responsibility to fulfil their side of the bargain. German support hangs in balance However, much of the uncertainty is coming from Germany, which faces a general election on 18 September. While the current chancellor is a firm supporter of Turkey and of opening the talks on time, he is predicted to lose the elections and be replaced by the Christian Democrat, Angela Merkel. Ms Merkel, along with her party, has made it clear that she is against Turkey becoming a full member of the bloc and wrote to conservative heads of government last week to make this point clear. If the leaders of both Germany and France start adding hurdles in the run-up to the talks, then they are very unlikely to start on time. Another issue likely to become embroiled in this discussion is Croatia's membership bid. Zagreb was supposed to open talks with the EU in March but was deemed not to have done enough to help find the fugitive general, Ante Gotovina. For certain countries, such as Austria, a strong supporter of Croatia's bid, it will be hard to agree to open talks with Turkey when Zagreb's prospects remain up in the air. Still no negotiating mandate All of this comes on top of the fact that the EU's negotiating mandate with Turkey has not been agreed. It has to be given the green light by all member states so that talks can start. It is thought to be too political an issue to be agreed at EU ambassador level, meaning there has to be a formal ministerial meeting. As of yet, there is no formal ministerial meeting in Brussels scheduled until 3 October, leaving open the prospect that the mandate will have to be signed off on the day the talks are formally supposed to open. All of this will be a big headache for the current British EU presidency, which is insisting that talks start as planned. For its part, Turkey has remained upbeat about the prospect of the talks opening on time. "The talks will begin because EU leaders are prudent enough not to overshadow or disregard strategic policies...due to internal political troubles or problems relating to conjecture", foreign minister Abdullah Gul was quoted by the Anatolia news agency as saying over the weekend.