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Turk PM vows no letup in reforms

* EU-Turkey deal hailed as a bridge builder

ANKARA: Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday vowed no respite in Turkey’s drive towards the European Union after winning a date from EU leaders to start entry talks.

Returning to a hero’s welcome after attending a historic summit in Brussels, Erdogan said: “This result will not spoil us. We will not rest on our laurels because our aim every day now is to move forwards, forwards, forwards.” “This result is a signal to us to work even more from now on. We will work harder, but don’t forget it is not only us, the government, we must all work harder,” he said at Istanbul airport in the early hours of Saturday.

Hundreds of excited supporters shouted “Turkey is proud of you” and waved Turkish and European Union flags as well as banners of Erdogan’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), a conservative group with Islamist roots. “Tomorrow’s Turkey will be very different from today’s Turkey, both politically and economically,” Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul told the crowd.

Deal hailed: The EU’s historic deal with Turkey to open entry talks with the vast Muslim country was hailed by supporters as a bridge builder between Europe and the Islamic world. But Turkey faced some sobering assessments after champagne celebrations at a European Union summit in Brussels on Friday, including the facts that it will be unable to join the bloc for at least a decade and possibly not at all.

Turkey and the 25 EU leaders agreed to start entry talks on Oct. 3, 2005 after hours of tense negotiations when it seemed they might not bridge differences over Ankara’s non-recognition of EU member Cyprus’ Greek Cypriot government. “We have been writing history today,” Dutch Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende, the summit chairman, told reporters.

“We believe that the EU should become a power which would really contribute to world peace,” said Erdogan, who at one stage threatened to walk out over demands that he recognise the Greek Cypriot government. British Prime Minister Tony Blair, one of Turkey’s strongest allies, said offering the large Muslim democracy the prospect of EU membership was a signal to the Islamic world:

“It shows that those who believe there is some fundamental clash in civilisations between Christian and Muslim are actually wrong, that we can work together and we can cooperate together.”

Markets celebrate: Turkish shares hit a record high on news of the deal, underlining Ankara’s hopes that entry talks will attract foreign investment in the poor and mainly agrarian country of 70 million on the cusp of Europe and the Middle East. The deal followed lengthy wrangling that ended only when Turkey said it would sign a key protocol but insisted this did not mean recognition of the Greek Cypriot government.

“It is not what you can call a formal legal recognition but it is a step that can lead to progress in this field,” said Balkenende.

Balkenende also warned: “Accession is the objective but the outcome cannot be guaranteed.” Two EU countries, France and Austria, have announced they will hold referendums on whether Turkey should join the bloc. Since unanimity is required, even if Ankara introduces all the reforms required by the EU, either country could torpedo the entry bid at the last minute. Erdogan said he looked forward to a better future for Turkey, saying his country had carried out a “silent revolution” in meeting EU demands for political and economic reform. reuters

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