German Chancellor Angela Merkel has urged Turkey to open its ports and Airport s to traffic from European Union member Greek Cyprus, emphasizing that a dispute between the EU and candidate Turkey blocks Ankara’s path for membership, according to Today's Zaman.
Merkel, speaking to a group of Turkish reporters in Berlin on Thursday, said Turkey must implement the Ankara protocol, which the EU says makes it a legal obligation for Turkey to open its ports and Airport s to Greek Cypriot vessels. “We have to achieve progress in this area,” Merkel said, adding that she will visit Greek Cyprus early next year to do her share to speed up efforts for a solution.
Turkey refuses to open its ports and Airport s to Greek Cyprus, saying the EU should also act on a 2004 promise to take measures to end the isolation of the Turkish Cypriots, a proposal blocked in the EU by the Greek Cypriots. In 2006, the EU froze accession negotiations with Turkey on eight out of 35 chapters due to Ankara’s failure to comply with its demands on the ports row.
Turkey opened accession negotiations with the EU in 2005 but progress since then has been very slow. Ankara says some EU states, such as Germany and France, are using the Cyprus issue as a pretext to block its accession process while they are opposed to an eventual Turkish membership on the grounds of cultural and religious differences. Merkel, along with French President Nicolas Sarkozy, are opposed to membership and propose a privileged partnership for Turkey instead.
Stressing that Germany and Turkey are two “friendly nations,” the German chancellor said that the recent visit of German President Christian Wulff to Turkey also made an important contribution in this sphere.
At the meeting with Turkish journalists, Merkel praised ties with Turkey, saying that it is a friend of Germany, and that the two countries could learn many things from each other. The German leader also said Turkey, a dynamic country with a young population, was a significant political and economic partner and an important ally within the G-20, NATO and in the Middle East.
Merkel, speaking to a group of Turkish reporters in Berlin on Thursday, said Turkey must implement the Ankara protocol, which the EU says makes it a legal obligation for Turkey to open its ports and Airport s to Greek Cypriot vessels. “We have to achieve progress in this area,” Merkel said, adding that she will visit Greek Cyprus early next year to do her share to speed up efforts for a solution.
Turkey refuses to open its ports and Airport s to Greek Cyprus, saying the EU should also act on a 2004 promise to take measures to end the isolation of the Turkish Cypriots, a proposal blocked in the EU by the Greek Cypriots. In 2006, the EU froze accession negotiations with Turkey on eight out of 35 chapters due to Ankara’s failure to comply with its demands on the ports row.
Turkey opened accession negotiations with the EU in 2005 but progress since then has been very slow. Ankara says some EU states, such as Germany and France, are using the Cyprus issue as a pretext to block its accession process while they are opposed to an eventual Turkish membership on the grounds of cultural and religious differences. Merkel, along with French President Nicolas Sarkozy, are opposed to membership and propose a privileged partnership for Turkey instead.
Stressing that Germany and Turkey are two “friendly nations,” the German chancellor said that the recent visit of German President Christian Wulff to Turkey also made an important contribution in this sphere.
At the meeting with Turkish journalists, Merkel praised ties with Turkey, saying that it is a friend of Germany, and that the two countries could learn many things from each other. The German leader also said Turkey, a dynamic country with a young population, was a significant political and economic partner and an important ally within the G-20, NATO and in the Middle East.